Death Comes a Calling
by CaptnDeathCarpet
Summary: Female Shepard, Paragon. Lesbian theme but no smut, non-canon obviously as Shepard has almost no female romance options in game, loss and grief in the first chapter.
1. Death Comes a Calling

**Omega Nebula, Amada System 2183 CE**

Anastasia heard the hissing and instantly knew she was in trouble. "Shit, shit, shit," she fumbled blindly behind her head, desperately trying to reach the damaged oxygen hose that fed the precious air from her suit's environment controls into her helmet. It must have been ruptured during the explosion which catapulted her out of the Normandy.

She had no way to repair the damage and her only hope was to plug the hole somehow before she ran out of air. Time was not on her side, breathing was becoming more difficult with every second that passed, her senses were dimming quickly as her body shut down from oxygen starvation, "Oh, god no!" she screamed silently "Not like this, not after all we've been through!".

Hands becoming numb and unresponsive she was rapidly losing consciousness, she caught a brief glimpse of the ship's escape pods illuminated brightly by the burning hull of the Normandy. Her last thoughts before the darkness took her were of Gunnery Chief Ashley Williams, "Please let her be safe. I love you Ash, I'm so sorry we didn't have more time," tears ran freely down her face.

Mercifully, if it could be called mercy, within seconds it was over; the life of Commander Anastasia "Ana" Shepard, Alliance Navy, first human Spectre, survivor of Mindoir and hero of the battle of the Citadel was extinguished.

Her lifeless body became caught in the gravitational pull of the nearby planet and started to gain momentum. The N7 combat suit that had offered protection in life now became her shroud, it started to glow incandescently as she entered Alchera's atmosphere and plummeted towards the planet's surface several miles below.

Meanwhile the SSV Normandy, the most advanced ship in the Alliance Navy, continued to be wracked by internal explosions as fuel cells, ammunition and climate control gases became consumed by the heat and flames. Adding to the destruction caused by the enemy ships swift, unexpected attack. Debris from the once sleek and graceful frigate began to join its commander's fiery descent to the planet surface until even the burning hulk succumbed to gravity.

Sobbing uncontrollably Ashley was gently pulled away from the escape pod observation window and into a tight embrace by both Tali and Dr Chakwas. She had watched helplessly as Anastasia, her commander, friend and more lately her lover was first blown out of the disintegrating SR-1's bridge, then struggled frantically with a damaged suit until her movements slowed then stopped and her distant figure drifted towards the planet.

Ana had been the anchor for the crew during the previous mission, she'd treated all the souls on her ship equally, not once asking them to do a job that she wasn't willing to do herself. Taking time to familiarise herself with every crew member and ensuring that each one knew all their contributions and efforts were appreciated, she had created a bond of loyalty amongst them that none had experienced before.

Ash was no exception, she felt herself drawn to the emerald eyed spectre, gratitude to her for saving her life had turned to respect for the resolute and resourceful commander. After joining the permanent crew of the SR-1 their talks at the end of each mission had led to a deep friendship between the two. Eventually their kinship had meant that Ash was comfortable enough to speak with Ana of her families painful, personal history in the Alliance, her faith, the loss of her father and deep love of her mother and sisters.

Ana had unexpectedly started to flirt with Ash during the months they spent on the Normandy, at first, she had rebuffed her as she had never been attracted to women and Alliance regulations were very clear on the topic of fraternization amongst personnel. Never one to give up easily Shepard had taken the rejection in good humour but continued to gently tease Ash about their relationship.

She couldn't say at what point she started to feel more than friendship towards Ana, it was a gradual blossoming towards lust, love?. She wasn't sure. Ash had tentatively started to participate in the banter until, "Oh God", she'd even quoted poetry to Ana and issued a challenge to her of how difficult Ash was to handle. Shepard had laughed so much at that last comment, in that infectious way of hers, that Ash had to join in until Wrex shouted down the cargo bay and demanded to know what was so funny. Even Garrus had raised his head from his absorbing calibrations on the Mako, the all-terrain exploration vehicle/gun platform.

It wasn't until the flight towards Ilos that Ash came to the realisation that they may be hurtling towards death and was determined to show Ana the depth of her feelings, she had almost run to the commander's quarters in her haste before bursting through the door. That night they had made love for the first time, it was Ash's first experience with a woman and Shepard had taken it slowly and gently, so Ash could be sure it was what she truly wanted. Later it had become more frantic as they desperately clung to each other before falling asleep, limbs all tangled. Waking with a huge grin on her face, the sight of Shepard quietly getting dressed so as not to disturb her was one of Ash's happiest memories, "Captain, oh my captain".

Even though Ashley was a seasoned soldier and had witnessed the brutal loss of her 212 squad on Eden Prime she'd never lost a loved one in combat. Ash felt herself slipping into shock, "She could still be alive, she's survived worse than this, she can't leave me," she kept repeating almost inaudibly.

Behind her mask, Tali's face was set into a determined grimace, even though she too felt Shepard's loss deeply and her cheeks were streaked with tears. Still, she tenderly helped Ashley back into her seat and crouched down in front of her not letting go, not once, she both comforted the stricken woman and found comfort in the contact. It was almost too much to process, only a short time ago they had been celebrating their victory against Saren and the Reaper ship Sovereign. Tali had been talking with Ana about arranging her return passage to the migrant fleet with the geth data they had retrieved on one of the planet-side missions and how much it could help her people.

Shepard had shown more kindness to Tali in the short time they had known each other than any other individual she had encountered on her pilgrimage. With the commander's encouragement the rest of the crew had eventually warmed to the young Quarian but was Ana's friendship that had made her life so much brighter….and now that was gone. Her heart was broken from the loss but how much worse could it be for Ashley who had lost even more with Ana's death?

Dr Karin Chakwas, eyes bright from unshed tears for the commander assumed a mask of professionalism and swiftly began to treat the wounded crew members that shared their lifeboat, starting with Ash. The dark-haired marine had only suffered minor cuts and bruising during the escape from the Normandy but had then beaten her hands to a bloody mess against the window in her distress at watching Shepard's demise. She applied medigel, administered a mild sedative to calm Ash and made a mental note to scan her hands when possible to ensure there was nothing more than superficial damage.

Karin would grieve for Anastasia later, when they were safe and the injured tended to. The crew knew that she and Shepard shared a close friendship, but it wasn't common knowledge that Karin was her godmother. She'd been best friends with Shepard's mother Hannah since high-school, through University and into the military and was like a second mother to the red-headed soldier.

She'd watched Ana grow up from a crying baby, to teenager and then into a confident but compassionate young woman. It had been one of her proudest moments when she'd been invited to Shepard's N7 training graduation ceremony. When she found out that the Normandy was recruiting for a doctor she jumped at the chance to serve alongside her god-daughter and pulled in every favour she could to transfer to the new ship.

Although she wanted to be the one to inform Hannah about the attack and Ana's loss, it was a call she was dreading to make to her oldest and dearest friend.

Karin prayed that the alien ship that had ambushed them was satisfied with the destruction of the Normandy and had no further designs on the survivors that were now completely at its mercy. Her second prayer was that Joker had managed to send out a distress signal and that help was on the way and would reach them in time.

Jeff "Joker" Moreau the ship's pilot was slumped forward in his safety harness with his head in his hands. He had witnessed Shepard's death from close range having been thrust into the escape pod designed to service the flight deck and forward bridge by Ana herself seconds before she was blown into space. "It's all my fault. She's dead because I wouldn't leave the Normandy and she had to come and save me. Why didn't she save herself first and leave me?" He moaned, angry with himself for not realising the ship was doomed despite all his efforts and the result his actions had brought about.

Jeff already knew the answer; it wasn't in Ana's nature, she never left anyone behind. The all too frequent comments from Dr Chakwas about having to patch her up after attracting weapons-fire away from endangered squad members testified to that self-sacrificing attitude and why all her crew would follow her through the Gates of Hell itself.

The Normandy crew were huddled in the dispersed escape pods, they were scared, angry, most were injured to some degree after their ordeal, but they but felt a universal urge.

Survival first, grief and revenge for the Commander later…


	2. Complicated Lives

Cereberus, or rather, the Lazarus Project under the direction of Miranda Lawson had performed a miracle by resurrecting Shepard, re-growing damaged tissue where possible, replacing it where necessary and augmenting with cybernetics, physically Ana was now stronger, faster and more resilient but her mind and personality had been left unchanged. Cerberus wanted Shepard as she was, not a puppet.

The first meeting between Ana since her return and Lieutenant Commander Williams was on Horizon, it hadn't gone well - they had gone their separate ways hurt and angry at each other.

Her relationship with Williams had been fraught with trials; they had finally admitted their feelings for each other before travelling to Ilos and spent the next few weeks spending as much time with each other as possible both in and out of bed, duties permitting.

But then the Collector attack happened and Ana died during the explosions that ripped the ship apart, Ash never really came to terms with the loss, becoming a driven woman only motivated by revenge for her late Commander.

Tali had been there to help pick up the pieces with Ana, then, while on board the SR-2 mutual respect and affection had developed into love between them.

Somehow they had survived their 'suicide' mission through the Omega 4 relay and destroyed the Collector base, Shepard had immediately severed ties with Cerberus and turned herself and the Normandy in to Alliance custody.

Ana had been under house arrest for several months while the Alliance fended off calls for her execution for the destruction of the Batarian system. Even this enforced isolation wasn't to last, the Reapers finally arrived in the system. Destroying unprepared fleets and cities in mere days, it was only this calamitous turn of events that resulted in Ana's reinstatement to active duty in the Alliance Navy.

Fleeing the destruction of London and travelling to Mars on Admiral Hackett's orders they had managed to secure Liara's safety and a now deactivated Cerberus infiltrator unit. Unfortunately, the disguised AI chassis had seriously injured Ashley before it was finally made inoperative.

During a desperate flight to the Heuta Memorial Hospital on the Citadel and its cranial trauma unit they'd managed to keep Ash stabilised until she could receive the specialised treatment she needed.

Shepard had visited the comatose Ashley as often as possible, talking to her as if she was aware of her presence and even reading her favourite poems to the unmoving Lieutenant Commander. Ana was overjoyed when Ash finally showed signs of recovery and slowly regained consciousness.

It was during on such visit while Ash convalesced that Shepard had broached the subject of their relationship and professed her un-dimished love for the injured Williams despite all their differences. Ash had been on the point of throwing a disparaging response back at Ana regarding her love and yet betraying it with Tali when the door opened suddenly and the petite quarian was there in front of them.

"Shepard, Ashley, please listen to me," she pleaded, they could both hear the quaver in Tali's voice even through her helmet's distortion. Tali rushed forward between the two and took hold of Ana'a hand and reached for one of Ash's, Ash recoiled involuntarily away from Tali, who had taken her place in Shepard's affections.

"Ana, I love you with all my heart, you know that don't you?" she gripped Shepard's hand tightly.

"I know Tali, and I love you too," Ana looked at her with love and sadness as she knew she was about to break Tali's heart, "but I also love Ashley."

"I know that too, I've seen the look in your eyes whenever she's mentioned...and you talk in your sleep." Shepard flinched at that last comment and blushed furiously.

"Ashley, you're like a big sister to me - you know how much you hurt Ana when you rejected her on Horizon don't you?" Ashley blinked at her in surprise and hurt but nodded almost imperceptibly.

"She is our Ana Shepard, not a clone or an imposter, nobody else could have pulled us through from the Collector base, you have my word on that." Tali hesitated briefly while she composed herself, "Do you still love Ana?"

"Yes. No. Hell, I don't know anymore!" Ash cried with frustration, a haunted look in her eyes, while she flitted looks between the two women she cared for most in the world, her lover back from the dead and the young quarian she'd come to consider as a little sister.

Eventually Ash sighed, lowered her tearful eyes to her lap and whispered "Yes, I love her more than life itself."

Tali reached over once more and took Ash's hand, this time the dark haired marine didn't pull away. "Then there's only one option left to us,"she straightened herself in the chair, took a deep breath that rattled through her speaker and carried on, "I don't want to lose either of you from my life...so, don't sisters share?"

A stunned silence followed Tali's question, the two humans stared at her then each other, then slowly Shepard started to chuckle then laugh out loud, but it wasn't a happy laugh, it was filled with hurt and longing and was bordering on the hysterical.

"Oh Tali, life isn't that simple, it was a bold idea but I don't think it would work out like that."

"But we love you Shepard, you love us, why not?"

"Tali..."

Shepard was about to say more more but was interrupted by a quiet remark from Ashley, "She has a point, Shep, we all love each other so I'm not totally writing that idea off."

"I beg your pardon?"

"I'm willing to try if Tali and you are," Ash raised her head and made eye contact with the other two, with a pained grimace she slowly pushed herself forward from the bed and took hold of one hand from each woman.

Mindful of Ashley's healing wounds the three women embraced each other tightly quietly crying tears of happiness.

So it began, it took time and patience from all of them to learn how to share their love with each other. Months working together on the Normandy during the mission to rally the disparate races to combat the Reapers gave them ample opportunity. Mourning the loss of Mordin brought the whole team together and added as further cement to their relationship.

Eventually Ashley also started to undergo the treatments that the Salarian doctor had prescribed for Shepard so the three of them could share a bed without risk to Tali's health.


	3. Into the Valley of Death

**London, Earth, 24th November 2186 CE**

Ana looked upon the maelstrom of chaos and destruction before her. The scene resembled a Bosch's vision of Hell as the allied forces battled for survival against the abominations created by the Reapers.

"Into the valley of death rode the six hundred," Ana quoted grimly, "Tennyson now, really Ash?" she smiled ruefully, "You're having a bad influence on me."

"Just trying to improve your mind Skipper." Came the glib reply.

When Shepard led the small squad in a mad dash towards the transport beam all three were injured during the charge, shields and armour could only cope with so much inbound ordnance. None of the wounds were immediately life threatening but the cumulative effect of minor blood loss and weariness from continuous fighting was taking a toll on them. After a particularly vicious barrage hit the three runners their armours were showing severe signs of battle damage; ablative plates were blackened and shattered in places and their shields flickered weakly as they recharged. Ana had managed to shield Tali as much as possible with her own body but the quarian's suit had received multiple punctures from shrapnel and she was starting to stumble as the inevitable infections set in. Ash was bleeding from several places including a deep thigh wound and a long shallow cut on her cheek when her helmet's visor had been shattered by a stray round.

Rather than risk the two women she loved any further Ana had called in for an emergency pick-up by the Normandy. As she helped them to the cargo ramp and relative safety the marine and quarian could only plead to go with her but Shepard was adamant, instructed them both to live for her and each other and turned her back on them before she could lose her composure.

Watching the ship lift off safely, Shepard re-orientating herself, wiped her eyes dry and quickly checked her store of thermal clips and once again started to sprint towards the column of light. The number of converging troops and vehicles was rapidly being decimated by Reaper ground forces and airborne strafing attacks. A nearby explosion threw Ana into the air then back to the ground with sickening force, she felt the sharp pain of breaking ribs when she crashed into the remains of a Mako. The vehicle had been reduced to a smoking ruin with bodies of combatants from both sides strewn around it.

Gasping in pain she pulled herself upright and clasping an arm to her side to stabilise the ribs she staggered onwards, the shot that shattered her shoulder came from a mutated Turian Marauder. Weakly raising her Carnifex she shot the abomination between the eyes, gritted her teeth and forced herself to keep moving.

It was adrenaline and anger that fuelled her now, anger at the obscene loss of life across the galaxy, the destruction of Thessia, Palavan, Earth and all the other planets that had been despoiled by the Reapers. The hard decisions that she'd been forced to make; the loss of Kaiden in the fight again Saren, the alliance ships destroyed to save the Destiny Ascension with the Citadel Council aboard and the sacrifice of 300,000 Batarians to delay the Reapers.

Ana was in pain, gut-wrenching pain but she pushed it back down as far as she could until it almost became normal, she knew that her chances of survival were less than remote, but she would beat the monsters or die trying, there was no compromise in this situation.

She was also terrified of failure, it meant the annihilation of all civilisation, everything she had sworn to protect - even if she fell she wanted to give those she loved a chance at life. She finally made it to the gateway and as she stepped into the blue light she gave a last look at the sky and prayed for all aboard the Normandy.

Between aerial combat manoeuvres as they tried to distract and harry the Reaper forces as much as they could, Joker had been monitoring Shepard's progress from the cockpit He was streaming updates to the medbay where Dr Chakwas was treating Ash and Tali's wounds. They could see her vitals drop when she was wounded and watched in agonised silence until they stabilised, and she started to move again.

They maintained the link with Ana's suit until the moment that it either became too damaged to transmit the data or she entered the Citadel, they couldn't tell which.

After a tortuously long time, the ship was rocked by a series of short but powerful concussive waves that caused a momentary communication blackout.

"Joker, what the fuck is going on out there?" came the question from the Normandy's XO, gone was the refined speech that Jeff would normally expect from Miranda Lawson.

Going against his usual nature, Jeff responded in his best alliance voice, "I'm not sure ma'am, it felt and looked like an EMP of some kind, but it only seems to be affecting the Reapers, look out the port window".

"Jesus Christ, they're falling out of the sky...have, have we won?" the Australian replied.

"It must be Shepard, she's done it - she's beaten the bastards!" he crowed.

"Do we have any contact with her suit? Is she alive?" Miranda demanded.

"Negative Ma'am, and unknown, there's no sign of her."

"Keep trying to locate her, I don't care what you have to do, but find her - we know she's injured and I'm not losing her after all the work I had to put in to rebuild her!" Miranda ordered Joker.

"Like I'm going to give in, I killed her once because of my stupidity, I won't repeat that mistake," he snorted.

"I heard that Joker, although I appreciate the sentiment. Keep me updated on your progress, Lawson, out."

Joker smirked and thought to himself about his XOs interest in Ana, "Was that strictly professional or is there still a personal interest going on there?".

EDI had been responsible for monitoring all onboard activities when the Normandy was a Cerberus ship, since she had acquired a body she and Jeff had become an item and she'd accidentally let slip that Ana and Miranda had a brief fling until Tali had joined the crew.

"Moreau to XO Lawson, I have an update, where are you?"

"Joker, I'm in the medbay helping Karin, we have Ash and Tali in here, what do you have for us?"

"We had a momentary transmission from Ana's suit close to the main crash site, her vitals were still there but she's in a really bad way!"

"Do you have a location?"

"Negative, not exact but we've managed to pinpoint a search area of about one square mile."

"Get us there now so I can get search parties out there with body heat scanners!"

"On the way Mir…Aye, aye ma'am, Joker out!" throwing a worried look across to EDI Joker brought the frigate around and headed to the location, dodging all the allied ships still in the air above the now quiet war zone.

Despite their injuries Tali and Ash determinedly led one of the teams themselves, tearing at debris with their own hands when they found life signs. They were guided throughout their search by Joker and EDI as they continuously scanned the area for any sign of Ana from the Normandy.

The groups were able to save several trapped and wounded allied soldiers as a result, administering emergency aid then directing trained medical staff to the injured. Bodies of those too late to do anything for were left where they had fallen after being marked on a holo map for recovery later.

They'd just managed to stem the bleeding of a badly wounded Asari commando when an urgent shout from Miranda caught their attention.

"Ash, Tali, she's here, we've found her - she's alive!"

Moving as quickly as they could considering their wounds and the broken terrain they finally reached Miranda and frantically started to wrench debris out of the way, "Shepard, can you hear us? We're here, hold on love!"

As the final piece of ship that trapped Shepard was gently lifted away the extent of her injuries became apparent, "Oh God! Shepard, stay with us," Miranda demanded as Tali and Ash looked on in horror at what damage had been wrought upon their lover.

Miranda feverishly directed the other two as she applied medigel and administered pain relief and adrenalin to Shepard before they could transfer the Commander to the Normandy medbay and into the care of her anxiously waiting godmother Dr Chakwas.

Her face caked in both dried and freshly oozing blood, Shepard stirred weakly and one emerald eye slowly opened, "Am I dead? Because I'm surrounded by beautiful women..." she croaked with a lopsided smile.

"You stupid Bosh'Tet, you'll pay for that later!" Tali replied, her face behind the mask was tense but a brief look of relief passed across her features.

"Did we win? Where's Anderson?" Shepard whispered.

"It's over Skipper, you did it whatever 'it' was, the Reapers are down!" Ash spoke into her ear while holding Ana's hand, "No sign of the Admiral yet but they'll keep looking". The commander didn't hear the last comment however as the sedative had taken hold and she'd surrendered to the effects.


	4. To Save A Life

**Heuta Memorial Hospital, Citadel, 3rd December 2186 CE**

The team that worked the hardest on repairing Shepard's broken body was once again headed by Miranda, after all she had the most detailed knowledge of what enhancements had been made to the Commander during the Cerberus project.

"This is becoming a habit of yours Shepard," she smiled down fondly at the unconscious Ana and gently smoothed hair from her sweaty brow. Ana had been put into an induced coma to reduce the chances of shock.

**A few days earlier:**

Following information received from Liara, using her resources as the Shadow Broker they'd managed to locate the abandoned space station that had housed the Lazarus Project. The Illusive Man, in his arrogance hadn't even bothered to have the place stripped bare or even to destroy the facility, it had just been moved from its previous orbit and then left to float in space.

As the shuttle approached the station Miranda commented, "Stay alert everyone, we have no way of knowing what structural damage has occurred or if there are any hostiles on board." The accompanying unit of five marines didn't really need reminding but there was no harm in doing so.

Once safely docked they disembarked and fanned out, everything was oppressively quiet as they made their way forward. Corridors were dimly lit by emergency power only; the whole squad was on edge as the surrounding pools of darkness pressed in upon them. Miranda led the small strike-force that was now carefully working its way through the station, the objective was to find and recover as much data and equipment as possible that could be used to help Shepard's recovery.

Bodies of Cerberus staff still lay where they had fallen, blast marks and blood smears adorned the floors, walls and ceilings, highlighting the ferocity of the slaughter that had taken place. Life support was offline, this was a blessing in disguise as the interior temperature was below freezing. The system failure had prevented decomposition.

"Shit, that heartless bastard didn't even recover the bodies," Miranda was truly appalled by the indifference of her previous employer. These were people that had reported to her during the two years it had been her home while she rebuilt Shepard. As far as she was aware the only survivors from the whole bloody affair were Ana, Jacob and herself. She promised to herself to arrange a retrieval detail so at least these poor bastards could be returned to their loved ones, or at the very least receive a decent funeral.

Calling to Vega, Miranda split the team into two squads, "I want you to sweep the area and eliminate any active mechs James, keep in radio contact and let me know if you hit any problems."

"Aye, aye ma'am." He looked at the squad, "You two with me, I have point, you take left and right," he saluted Miranda and moved off. This was his last mission with the Normandy before shipping off to the N7 training programme. He was his usual confident self about his chances of graduating, after all he'd already undergone some of the expected training methods while serving under Shepard's command.

Miranda motioned for the two remaining marines to follow her, "The main lab isn't much further, but I'll also need to go to my old quarters to pick up some notes and other items.

As they approached her room she instructed the soldiers to stand guard outside the door, "I won't be long," it felt odd stepping inside that room again after so long, everything was just as she'd left it. She activated her terminal and while the files were transferring to her omni-tool she looked around and started to pack the few possessions she didn't want to leave behind. From the wardrobe she grabbed some dresses, shoes and underwear. She stared at the spare Cerberus uniforms hanging up, she now wore a navy-blue combat suit sporting the Alliance emblem and the rank badges of major, she didn't need Cerberus any longer.

With one last look at the white catsuits she closed the wardrobe door and walked into the bathroom, there she picked up a few pieces of jewellery that had been left in haste. Some datapads were all that was left to stow into the kitbag. The bed was still in disarray and the memory of her and Jacob having sex months previously sprang to mind but was quickly discarded, he'd been a pleasant way of relieving tension at the time but now she was a completely different woman to the Cerberus 'Ice Queen'.

She mused that Shepard was responsible for so many changes to her life, the task of resurrecting Ana had been all consuming at the time, but the subject of the project had ended up becoming her friend, supporter and lover for a brief time. Even though they were no longer together Miranda had sworn to herself never to let Ana down.

Miranda stepped outside the door and closed it behind her for the last time, "All done here, let's go," she headed off to the main lab where Shepard had lain for two years.

"Vega to Lawson, do you copy? Over."

"I hear you Lieutenant, what's your status?"

"We found a few active mechs ma'am, they've been neutralised. No injuries to report. There are a number of bodies on this level too."

"Acknowledged, good job James, Rendezvous at the lab, sending you the coordinates now. Continue to sweep as you make your way to us."

"Aye, aye ma'am, on our way."

As Miranda and her escort rounded the next corner they were met with gunfire, one marine grunted in pain as a burst of rounds battered through his shields, "Damn mechs, you still with us corporal?"

"Yes ma'am, just nicked my arm. Those things sure pack a punch!"

"Good to hear it's not serious, load explosive rounds and fire on my mark. I'm going to throw a stasis field into the target area. Corporal, you use overload on the closest targets. Ready?"

"Aye, aye ma'am."

Miranda readied her biotics and threw a stasis field directly into the group of mechs that had reactivated on their approach, "Now!"

The mechs were raised into the air by the field, then overload attacked their programming and the robots started to jerk spasmodically, concentrated fire from the three soldiers blew them apart and pieces rained down as the biotic attack dispelled.

"All clear now ma'am," said the nearest marine

"Move forward and let's check the lab for more hostiles," Miranda ordered as Vega and his squad jogged around the corner to re-join the others.

Five minutes later Miranda hailed the shuttle, "Lawson to Cortez, do you copy?"

"Loud and clear ma'am," Steve replied immediately.

"The station has been secured, send over the tech staff, Vega will meet them in the hangar and escort them to the lab. I want this mission over as quickly as possible, we need to get back to Shepard asap."

They had been lucky to be honest, thanks to the Illusive Man's disregard they were able to salvage most of the project's medical equipment and all the locally held data. The dismantling was carried out efficiently and the packing cases were transferred first to the waiting shuttle in several loads and on to the Normandy where it was stowed in the cargo hold. Shepard would be the primary beneficiary but then the advanced technology would be shared with the rest of the allied races.

"I hope Harper is turning in his grave at the thought of Cerberus tech benefiting non-human species." Miranda thought viciously.

"Lawson to all alliance crew, we're done here. Rendezvous at the shuttle in five minutes, we're leaving this station," she waited until all groups acknowledged her orders then left the now empty lab and made her own way to the shuttle bay.

In her report submitted to Alliance command she requested a retrieval team to collect the bodies, the Normandy didn't have the facilities to store so many.


	5. A Hard Goodbye

**London, Earth, 7th January 2187 CE**

A few days after Shepard was pulled barely alive from the rubble and debris of the London battlefield, Admiral David Anderson's body was recovered. He too displayed significant injuries, but a post-mortem examination determined that his death was caused by internal bleeding compounded by a gunshot wound to the abdomen. The catastrophic blunt force trauma visible was the result of the fall from the Citadel following the destruction of the Reapers and was received after his death.

Once she was able, Shepard had dictated a preliminary report to the Council and Alliance Command on the events that took place in the Citadel during those climactic few hours, she was interviewed and exonerated of any responsibility for David's death.

He was buried in London with full military honours a month later, with representatives from each of the Alliance governments in attendance. All the Council members were present and non-council species from the allied forces also sent delegations. Despite protestations from her doctors and crew Shepard was also there to bid farewell to her friend and mentor, albeit in a wheelchair and using an oxygen mask. Just before the coffin was lowered into the waiting grave, Ana removed the mask and was helped to her feet by Ashley and James so she could salute the man, that had in many ways, acted as a father figure to her during her formative years and beyond. He had been a friend of her parents and was there for her mother and Ana when her father was killed in action.

The coffin had been draped with two flags; the first being the Human Systems Alliance and the second was the ensign of the Council Spectres. Days before the funeral Shepard had received a communication from Councillor Tevos to inform her of Anderson's posthumous induction into the Spectre ranks.

**Shepard,**

**In recognition of Admiral Anderson's exemplary actions and his sacrifice during the Reaper war, the Council decided to act on your petition and re-examine Saren's report. Submitted after Anderson's evaluation mission, forensic analysis revealed both data and video recording inconsistencies, a result of manipulation of the evidence by Saren.**

**Therefore, both the testimony and rejection of the application has been rescinded. As a result, the Council are pleased to inform you that David Anderson will be added to the role-call of Spectres, having reviewed his background and subsequent Alliance service record we are satisfied he would have filled all necessary requirements to be inducted into this organisation.**

**We hope you are recovering well and look forward to seeing you in due course when you able to attend the Citadel Tower.**

**May the Goddess's blessing be with you,**

**Councillor Tevos**

Once the gunfire from the salutes had faded away Shepard was formally presented with the carefully folded Spectre flag from David's coffin, the presiding officer had attempted to give her the Alliance flag too, but she had refused with a shake of her head and indicated the blonde woman to her right.

"This should go to Kahlee Sanders please Lieutenant, she also bears his loss," Ana stated.

The marine saluted smartly, pivoted on his heel and marched the few steps to the Grissom Academy Director, he presented the triangular package to her then stepped back and saluted, "Ma'am".

"Thank you, Lieutenant, and thank you Shepard," She looked across at Ana and smiled at her through her tears.

The funeral was followed by a small gathering of Anderson's closest friends. Ana had been permitted to attend for a short time only before having to return to the hospital. Under the observant eyes of both her mother and Karin Chakwas she tried to eat a small amount of food, she was pushing the remains around the plate when Kahlee approached her and asked quietly, "How did you know about us?"

"He mentioned it during a vid call when he gifted the place to me and we um, found some of your personal things in the apartment," Ana blushed.

"Ah, that explains that then," Kahlee laughed while blushing herself now, "He did ask me to move in with him you know? But he was hardly ever there until his appointment as Ambassador, but by then I was at the Academy with little spare time. We did manage the odd weekend together but we always thought we'd have more time to work it out," she smiled sadly and added, "He was always very proud of you Ana, he was just sorry your dad wasn't there to see the woman you've become and what you've achieved".

"He was all the father I needed him to be after dad died. David stepped in to help my mom when he could, he cut me slack and brought me into line when necessary," Ana smiled, "He supported me when I decided to enlist but never influenced my decision".

"I'm glad you were there with him at the end Shepard."

"I begged him to hold on but I think he was just too tired and badly injured even for his stubborn streak. We talked about the future and family but he just slipped away, I think he'd found peace at the end."

Kahlee covered Ana's hand comfortingly and squeezed gently, "I need to go back to the others now Shepard, perhaps we can keep in touch and raise a glass or two to David when you've recovered?"

"I'd like that Kahlee, then we can swap some outrageous stories about him," Ana agreed without hesitation, smiling at the thought.

"Until later then Commander," Kahlee hugged Ana goodbye.

Shepard looked over her shoulder, "Mum, Aunty Karin?"

The two older women stopped mid conversation and her mother replied, "Yes dear?"

"I think I'm ready to go back to the hospital now if that's OK?"

"Of course it is sweetheart, coming Karin?"

The white haired doctor smiled at her friend and nodded, she moved closer to Ana and started to push her wheelchair towards the door.


	6. Convalescence

**Shepard's Apartment, The Silversun Strip, Citadel: February to March 2187 CE**

Shepard was bored, terminally bored, she was still confined to her apartment and hobbling around painfully as her body continued to recover. She'd exhausted her small library of books, there was nothing new to watch on the news or vids and she'd reached her limit of patience with meditation – she needed a distraction and soon. Every day it was the same monotony of sitting around until her physiotherapy appointment which always left her tired and aching even more than when she began. The weekly psychotherapy sessions weren't much fun either, even if she acknowledged they were helping cope with the traumatic experiences from the last few years and the residual effects of her ordeal on Mindoir.

At least she was able to move around unaided now, the first few weeks after being discharged from hospital had been a nightmare; she couldn't dress herself without help and had to be helped to the bathroom. Even the smallest effort had left her short of breath, nauseous, shaking and exhausted. Ash and Tali had moved into the apartment with her but even they couldn't spend all their time at home; Ash was acting as military liaison between the Council and the Alliance and Tali was overseeing the repair work to the mass effect gates using technicians and engineers from all the races. They tried to juggle nursing Ana and the demands from their work as best as they could but after a few weeks it became apparent that they needed help.

The ground-floor bedroom had been set up for her recovery and her mother, the indomitable Admiral Hannah Shepard had taken a leave of absence to help care for her daughter while Ana's lovers were busy. Hannah had to browbeat Hackett into granting her absence, but he'd relented eventually.

The two women hadn't spent so much time together since Ana's early childhood and they'd barely seen each other or spoken for the last three years since the beginning of the Reaper Wars. It gave them time to talk through recent events including Shepard's death, resurrection, the Cerberus mission and subsequent Alliance incarceration, it also helped them repair their distanced relationship. Eventually duty called Hannah back to the fleet but in the month, she'd spent at the apartment she'd come to know and appreciate her daughter's partners and knew she was in good hands.

Karin Chakwas was a frequent visitor while Ana was housebound which helped as she brought her sense of humour which always raised Shepard's spirits, her aunt had a way of making the most pointed observations in a very disarming way. She could immediately tell if Ana was overexerting herself and scold her gently with a caring smile.

"But I'm going crazy here Aunt Karin, I need to do something constructive until I'm fit enough to return to duty," she complained.

"I know dear but considering your injuries you should be pleased with your progress, Miranda's team carried out some really impressive work on you, again…" the doctor replied.

Shepard sighed loudly, "I know and I'm really grateful to her and you all, but I noticed you didn't mention you were on the surgical team helping her".

"How did you find out Ana? You weren't supposed to know about that," Karin replied sheepishly.

"I'm a Spectre aunty, I have informants everywhere," Ana waggled her eyebrows at her and smiled broadly.

"You, you're incorrigible, you impish child," Karin laughed, "But seriously, if you're that bored is there something you can do that doesn't involve you damaging yourself?"

"Hmm, I could contact the Council and see if there's anything I can help with from home while I can't move around much, thanks Karin," she smiled and kissed the older woman's cheek.

"I'll leave you to it dear, but I'll be back in a couple of days to check on you. Don't overdo it or I'll ask Ash and Tali to restrain you!"

"Ooh, now there's a thought," Shepard grinned mischievously.

"Anastasia Shepard, behave yourself until you're recovered young lady!"

"Spoilsport," Ana poked her tongue out at the retreating woman.

Feeling buoyed up by her aunts visit, Shepard slowly made her way to her desk using her crutches, her legs were getting stronger with the exercises and the healing bones and muscles were aching less. She was still covered with a light sheen of sweat however as she sat down and took a few breaths while repeating one of the mantras Samara had taught her to calm her racing heartbeat. After a minute or so she felt collected enough to log into her terminal and started to read her messages, most were from friends and well-wishers, it seemed that Sam was still filtering through her messages to reduce stress on the commander.

Smiling in silent gratitude to the thoughtfulness of her comms specialist she read through a few of the priority mails and responded as best as she could. She knew she had to submit a more detailed report about the events at the Crucible at some point, but it was still painful, and she was thankful the Alliance wasn't pressuring her about it yet.

Ana composed a mail to the Council and enquired about any tasks she could help with while she was incapacitated and sent it while it still felt like a good idea. Approximately thirty minutes later she received a reply from Councillor Tevos thanking her for the offer and detailing the urgent matter of replacing fellow Spectres lost in the conflict. Attached to the message were sixty-three personnel files of potential candidates, Ana was asked to review the files, contact the relevant governments as necessary if further information was required and create a short-list for evaluation.

"Well, I did ask so I can't complain about it," she rolled her eyes, she'd hoping for something slightly less taxing under the circumstances, "At least it'll keep me occupied". She scanned the list while mentally listing the attributes that she felt the Spectres required from their operatives. When it came to the human names she was dismayed to see the bias towards military personnel. She was sure that the men and women were equally laudable but from personal experience she knew that this background wasn't necessarily the most suitable, they needed independent thinkers not a textbook mentality.

"Hmm, I can think of three humans that would fit the bill better than this lot and one of them is dead," she mused thinking of her clone. Rather than anger she felt remorse at not being able to save the woman, her 'sister', that had tried to supplant her, such potential twisted and then wasted. She then thought of the person responsible for that situation; Maya Brooks, or whatever her real name was. Maya was the epitome of a 'Femme Fatale', beautiful and deadly, her humancentric machinations had almost resulted in the deaths of Ana and her entire crew the previous year. Maya had appropriated the unconscious clone and brainwashed her into becoming a parody of Shepard; a violent, ruthless thug – with a more benevolent environment, support and therapy perhaps the other Shepard could have been helped to overcome her conditioning and become her own person.

"Maya, now there's an ideal operative if ever there was one, brilliant and ruthless. She'd be perfect for the role, under supervision of course. If only she could be persuaded to take a more galactic view rather than a human first attitude," she entered a note against the report anyway, no need to discount the woman completely.

Shepard smiled despite herself, Brooks had flirted with her even while trying to disable the restraints after being apprehended, Ana had certainly found the brunette alluring despite the attempted murders. She'd seen the woman in a skin-tight mini dress and she certainly had a killer figure, and lips that just begged to be kissed, Ana shook her head to get those thought out of her mind, "Ah, well, under very different circumstances things could have been much more interesting between us," she grinned, "I wonder if she's been behaving herself in custody? I could always request an update on her status, it wouldn't harm to keep tabs on her and that's for sure".

The other candidate she was going to propose instead was an obvious one to her and that was Miranda. The woman was an accomplished operative, had a razor-sharp intellect and was highly experienced in covert missions. Her combat skills were impressive to say the least and the single-minded focus she could adopt was downright scary, although the ruthlessness she used to apply to her work was now tempered with the facility for compassion. The question wasn't whether she was suitable for the role of Spectre, that wasn't ever in doubt it was more case of would she be interested?

During Ana's psych sessions she'd been able to finally start to open up about her experience on Mindoir, encountering Talitha had unlocked long suppressed memories and had resulted in frequent nightmares related to survivor's guilt.

Ana had received a message from Talitha during the final missions against the Reapers but had only reached back out to her during her rehabilitation. She'd been intending to catch up with her anyway, but the therapist had also suggested it as part of her recovery process. After a number of messages and vid calls they'd eventually arranged to meet up, Shepard still wasn't fully mobile so called a cab to pick her up from the apartment and take her to the sheltered accommodation where Talitha was living during her own ongoing treatment.

Talitha was waiting for her inside the quiet reception area fiddling with her hands nervously, when Ana entered the room she smiled in relief, stood up and went to greet the Spectre. "Shepard, Commander..it's good to see you".

"No need to be so formal please Talitha, I'm Ana to you," Ana smiled back at her appraisingly, the last few months of treatment had obviously been doing some good. She looked so much healthier, her colour although still pale no longer had a grey tinge and regular meals meant she'd lost the half-starved appearance. Her chestnut coloured hair had grown out and been cut into a shoulder length bob and her eyes had an awareness which had been missing before.

In fact, to outward appearances she looked like a normal, healthy, pretty young woman, not someone receiving much needed support and treatment to counter years of abuse as a slave. "Are you ready to go? I may need some help getting around still, if that's OK?" she indicated the crutches.

Talitha nodded and smiled shyly, "Of course I don't mind helping Comm..Ana," she placed an arm around Ana's waist to help her. The girl's wiry strength surprised Shepard momentarily but slaves were worked hard so it shouldn't have been unexpected.

Their initial destination was a small coffee shop situated slightly back from the main concourse, Talitha was still nervous in crowds and they'd selected this café as it was quieter and hopefully less stressful for her. They selected some beverages and food from the menu and sat for a while talking about mostly inconsequential topics interspersed with updates on their treatments, Ana could see Talitha visibly relax as the afternoon went on. The change of pace was a pleasure for Ana and she genuinely appreciated the younger woman's company. They had a shared experience on Mindoir which they didn't have to hide from each other, albeit their outcomes were vastly different.

As the conversation began to tail off into a series of companionable silences Ana realised the time and commented to Talitha, "Did you still want to go shopping? We could stay here or go somewhere else if you'd prefer that?"

"No, no, it's fine Ana thank you. I would like to spend some more time with you, I was hoping you could help me pick out some clothes if you don't mind?" she asked.

"No problem, although I warn you my dress sense is pretty much limited to jeans, boots and t-shirts these days," she grinned, "formal dresses I can manage at a push" noticing a slight blush appear on Talitha's cheeks, "Is there a special occasion?"

"It's….oh, um," the blush deepening on the her face, she looked down embarrassed and mumbled, "Lieutenant Giraud kept in touch after you helped me that day in the dock area and he's um, asked me out on a date….and I said yes," she smiled shyly.

"That's wonderful news Talitha!" Shepard reached over and squeezed the girl's hand encouragingly. "Do I need to have a Spectre to C-Sec talk with him first about acceptable behaviour on a date?" she teased.

"Oh god, no Ana!" Talitha replied looking shocked, then she started to laugh as she realised Ana was in fact teasing rather than making a serious offer, Shepard took delight in seeing the girl laugh and joined in with the merriment until they were both red in the face and slightly short of breath.

Several hours later they'd braved the shops and Ana had helped Talitha to choose a few outfits including a dress that complimented the younger woman's hair and some jewellery to set off her eyes, Shepard's fame and a few impromptu endorsements resulted in generous instore discounts. "If Giraud doesn't at least try to sweep you off your feet then I will personally have a stern word with him, after kicking his ass around the block, crutches or no crutches," Shepard declared smiling.

Back at Talitha's residential building, as the taxi waited to return Ana to her apartment they hugged goodbye and Shepard spoke quietly into the girl's ear, "If you need me for anything, even if it's just a chat any at time just contact me, OK?"

"I will Ana, thank you for all you've done for me and for being my friend," Talitha smiled back with damp eyes and kissed Shepard's cheek.

"Let me know how you're doing, how the date goes, and I'll see you again soon," Ana promised.

When she got back to her apartment there was no sign of either of her girlfriends, so Ana turned in for an early night, she was exhausted after the day out, sleep came quickly and was thankfully untroubled after such a pleasant day.

Shepard had also been keeping in touch with Leslie Jameson, the doctor from the MSV Hugo Gernsback. Studiously ignoring the topic of Jacob's father, they discussed the progress that she and the rest of the crew were making in regaining their cognitive skills after being rescued. The women were making markedly more progress than the few surviving men which had the medical teams perplexed and resulted in even more tests, scans and other medical evaluations.

The degenerative effects of the indigenous foodstuffs only seemed to permanently affect short-term memory which was a blessing in some ways as the women didn't retain memories of the years of physical and sexual abuse they'd received at the hands of the Gernsback officers. Another side-effect had been the suppression of their reproductive systems, so no children had been conceived during the ten-year period.

With their long-term memories and brain functions slowly returning to normal the crew were looking forward to resuming their lives again after their extended ordeal. Leslie intended to return to medical practice even if that meant some re-training to refresh her skills and to catch up with innovations from the last decade. Ana offered her a place in the Normandy medical crew once she was ready, Leslie thanked her for the opportunity and would think it over.

Unbeknown to Talitha and Leslie their treatments and financial support were receiving additional funds indirectly from Ana. Based on financial advice from Barla Von she had made some shrewd investments with the bulk of the credits they'd 'liberated' from Cerberus, this gave her financial independence above the stipends from both the Council and the Alliance. Part of the profits had been channelled into a charitable trust fund to support causes including the survivors of Mindoir, the Gernsback crew and Zhu's Hope colonists. As a bonus the trust qualified for tax relief which increased the funds available.

A few days and many personnel files later Ana had some visitors that provided another welcome distraction, "Hey Lola," was as formal as it got from Vega, he'd breezed into the apartment with a familiar young woman on his arm, it was the scientist she'd met the year earlier while investigating Leviathan.

"Vega," she nodded clasping his meaty hand, "Hi Ann, nice to see you again," she smiled at the younger woman when they shook hands.

"Commander, it's good to see you recovering so well," Ann Bryson returned the smile and then looked fondly at the tall dark-haired marine holding her other hand.

"James?" Ana raised her eyebrow and smirked at the suddenly bashful soldier.

"Hey, don't look at me like that Lola," he said on the verge of blushing, "Ann and I wanted you to be the first one we told about us getting together" he flashed a smile.

"Judging by the happy look on both of your faces I guess congratulations are in order," Shepard beamed at them, "Please tell me he hasn't inflicted his 'famous' plate of eggs on you yet Ann?"

"Oh no Shepard, I've already been warned off about them," Ann laughed.

"Idiotas," Vega exclaimed, "You wouldn't know good food if it kicked you in the cojones," he grumbled.

Both women laughed at the sulky expression on Vega's face, "The only cojones in this room that we need to kick are yours James," Ana added grinning.

After a few more weeks of increasing frustration with her general inactivity, Shepard was finally given a date for her fitness evaluation before returning to duty. During the two weeks leading up to the appointment she was pushing herself harder than ever before which received raised eyebrows from both Ash and Tali but no comments were forthcoming, they knew how important it was to her. Every night she practically crawled into bed and immediately fell into an exhausted slumber.

**Alliance Assessment Centre, Citadel, 26****th**** March 2187 CE**

"Commander Shepard, ma'am?" the young lieutenant stood in front of her and saluted crisply. Ana was sprawled in one of the reception room chairs trying to exude an aura of calm assurance. Underneath she was unusually anxious, but she wasn't going to let anything stop her passing the damned tests. She was making a determined effort to hide the limp that might influence the examiner's decision.

"Lieutenant," she stood smoothly and returned the salute.

"Welcome to the assessment centre ma'am," he checked his omni-tool, "Once you've changed into PT fatigues your first appointment is the medical exam, followed by the weapons range, circuit training and finally the assault course and combat simulation which will then be followed by a further medical check," he paused and smiled briefly, "Please follow me ma'am," and he then led her into the centre.

Shepard was plain dog-tired, the military assessors had ensured they'd tested her to the limits of her endurance and skills at every stage, she'd also been poked prodded, scanned and tested in every way possible by the medical team. Now she was sat ramrod straight in a standard issue military chair, read uncomfortable as hell, in front of the facility's senior physician; on his recommendation she would either be marked as unfit for duty or reinstated to her ship and crew.

The colonel finally looked up from the report, locking eyes with Ana he started, "Well Commander, it's an honour to meet you. Admiral Hackett speaks very highly of you unsurprisingly, we owe you a lot."

Ana smiled and acknowledged the compliment, "Thank you sir".

"I won't keep you in suspense any longer Shepard, the results speak plainly enough for themselves; your weapons and combat skills are as sharp as ever and your psych evaluation came back clean with a recommendation for annual follow up only," he cleared his throat and continued, "Physically you're within acceptable levels, your hearing, eyesight, blood pressure and heart rate are all fine and your eye to hand coordination is exceptional. My recommendation is that you return to full active duty at 0800 hours Monday the second of April, until then you are placed on light duties on the Citadel, congratulations Commander".

Trying hard not to grin, "Thank you sir," she stood and saluted.

"Before you go Shepard, and this is off the record," he smiled sympathetically, "I've reviewed your previous assessments and even though you passed I know you're not up to scratch yet, your leg is giving you trouble isn't it? You managed to conceal it from the instructors, but I can tell you're shifting weight off it".

"Sir," she nodded acknowledged his observation.

"Just try to take it easy for a few more weeks while it heals Shepard, I don't want to see you back here again," he offered his hand, "Good luck out there Commander, just go and do what you do best; saving our sorry asses".

She took the hand and shook it warmly, "Thank you again sir, I promise to try and take your advice," she grinned.

Ash and Tali were both waiting nervously outside the centre when she exited the building but burst into laughter at Shepard's triumphant whoop. Ana strode across to them and took one in each arm, kissed Ash passionately and planted a row of kisses on Tali's faceplate, promising to exchange them for real kisses once they were back home.

"I take it that was good news then skipper?" Ash laughed.

"Returned to light duties on the Citadel with immediate effect and reinstatement to active duty in two weeks' time chief," she grinned, "Time to celebrate; drinks, food and I believe we have a lot of bedroom time to catch up on!"

Tali and Ash looked each other and nodded, "Bedroom first Shepard, you owe me kisses and us both a lot more than that," Tali stated firmly.

"I'll fetch the booze and glasses, don't start without me," Ash added smiling.

Looking far from crestfallen at the prospect Ana grinned at her girlfriends, shrugged and added, "Who am I to argue with the two most beautiful women in the galaxy? I'll order takeout for delivery in a couple of hours although you'll need to take it easy with me, I'm exhausted after the assessment!"

"Not a chance skipper," said Ash grabbing Shepard's ass with one hand and squeezing firmly. Tali let her hand gently brush Ana's breast, "Keelah, we've been waiting months for you to be well enough".


	7. Mordin's Legacy

**Eagle Nebula, Terminus Systems, 16****th**** April 2187 CE**

At Ana's side throughout the ordeal of recovery had been Ashley and Tali, "How on earth did I get so lucky, falling in love with those two?," Ana kept asking herself.

"Commander, you've received a new message at your private terminal," Kelly Chambers voice startled Ana from her reverie, she still hadn't quite got used to having the ex-Cerberus yeoman back on board the Normandy. Kelly had been one of the first of the returning personnel, now that the Cerberus threat to her safety had been removed she'd practically beaten Shepard's door down in her haste to enlist in the Alliance and return to the Normandy.

"Thank you, Kelly, who's it from?" Shepard asked, she trusted Kelly's discretion implicitly to filter out all the unimportant correspondence from her inbox.

There was a few seconds delay and as Ana turned to her yeoman, Kelly finally replied with a look of shock on her face, "It...it's from Mordin, Commander!"

"Mordin? But he's been dead for months!" Shepard looked quizzically, "EDI, is this correct or has his mail address been compromised?"

"I'm sorry Commander, I should have informed you earlier. This is an archived message that Dr. Solas entrusted to me before you left to cure the genophage on Tuchanka," EDI replied promptly, "He left instructions for it to be delivered to you in the case of our survival against the Reapers".

"I'll take this in my cabin in that case," Shepard decided and started to limp slightly to the elevator, this was her first week back on active duty and she was in the final stages of her recovery, the leg was still playing up although it hadn't stopped her passing the fitness requirements.

Exiting the elevator, she crossed the short hallway to her cabin cum office, command of a ship came with certain privileges, her cabin contained a small office space surrounded by display cabinets for her collection of scale models. Many of the popular space vehicles were represented here, mixed with some limited-edition pieces and a scratch-built model of the Shadow Brokers station. Tucked into a corner was her ensuite bathroom. Down a few steps was an L-shaped couch and a low table, beyond that was her large bed and some shelving. On a cabinet next to her bed was a holo-photo of her, Ash and Tali in a group hug, they were all laughing at some private joke.

Displayed prominently in the room was her original N7 helmet recovered during her pilgrimage to the resting place of the original Normandy. Her Alliance dog tags that had been removed from her corpse, passed through various collector's hands then subsequently acquired by Admiral Hackett and gifted back to Shepard via Liara sat in a frame next to her bed. The last items were a Prothean sphere given to her by Sha'ira, the Asari consort, the gift had triggered a vision of primitive humans from a larger artefact discovered during a planetary exploration. Finally, there was a small box frame containing David Anderson's service medals laying on the folded Spectre flag she'd received at his funeral.

Level with her office space the port wall was filled with a large aquarium, the occupants were lazily swimming around the space, due to inattention Ana had lost several fish during previous missions but had paid for an automated feeding station. With Kelly back on board she had offered to resume her previous duties of taking care of Shepard's fish.

Scurrying around in an exercise wheel was Rocky her space hamster, his cage sat securely on one of the shelves behind her desk. Somehow, he'd managed to survive on his own down amongst the pipes and conduits of the engineering deck when he escaped his cage during the Normandy's retro fit and Ana's incarceration. He was only recaptured when Shepard was looking for her personal effects that had been dumped around the ship by the alliance engineers.

Next to her bed on the port side of the ship Ana had her armour and clothing lockers, from here she could customise both for colour and finish and mod her armour to best suit her combat requirements. It was a comfortable cabin, not as big as Mirandas but then Ana wasn't expected to hold ship administration meetings here, only personal gatherings. A ship's captain held court in the briefing room on the CIC deck.

Ana crossed the short distance between the door and her desk and threw herself down into the chair and started to slowly massage her thigh, the big muscle was feeling tight after being on her feet for several hours, "I'll go see aunt Karin later and have her take a look," she thought.

She opened her terminal to read Mordin's message, it was an audio file with a number of text files attached, "EDI, play the audio message please."

"Yes Shepard, playing now."

As she listened to Mordin's voice and his familiar staccato delivery so typical of his race, Ana smiled sadly,"It's good to hear your voice my friend, you're missed,"

"Shepard, Commander, I have left this message with EDI in the hope we have been successful in defeating the Reaper forces,"

"EDI, if I have already discussed these matters with Shepard in person delete this message,"

"If not then I fear I have not survived the mission, I hope I died well Shepard,"

"Hmm, anyway back to the point,"

"As part of my research on board the Normandy I was responsible for the health of the crew and monitored their progress during the mission against the Collectors, I also continued this activity when I re-joined the ship on the way to Tuchanka,"

"I was able to analyse data from both Cerberus and Alliance personnel during these periods and also from some other individuals that we encountered,"

"This data was cross-referenced against available medical records and corroborated with personal consultations with the individuals involved, attached files are the findings and conclusions with recommendations that I make for further treatment where appropriate,"

"Files pertaining to the following individuals are included with this message as they have close personal association with you:

**Spectre Ashley Williams**

**Admiral Tali'Zorah Vas Normandy**

**Operative Miranda Lawson**

**Asari Justicar Samara**

**Asari Commando Shiala**

There are also some observations regarding other personnel at the end of this message," his voice continued, "Further files for non-immediate associates have been distributed direct to the health care provider for those individuals."

"Ever the scientist eh Mordin?" Ana mused, she proceeded to open the files for Ash and Tali.

**Name: Williams, Ashley Madeline**

**Species: Human. Gender: Female**

**Year of birth: 2158. Age: 27**

**Place of birth: Sirona, 61 Ursae Majoris System**

**Affiliations: Alliance Navy; rank: Lieutenant Commander (active), Citadel Council; status: Spectre (active)**

**Name: Vas Normandy, Tali'Zorah**

**Species: Quarian. Gender: Female**

**Year of birth: 2161. Age: 24**

**Place of birth: Migrant Ship Rayya**

**Affiliations: Quarian Navy: rank: Admiral (active), Spectre Ana Shepard**

Ana had read Ash's military service and medical file on several occasions and Cerberus's dossiers on Tali so she skimmed through the profiles for both of them. Together they'd had several discussions regarding what gene therapy and cybernetic augmentations each had received, whether as an Alliance recruit in the case of her and Ash, or as part of the Quarian conditioning for life in an environmental suit for Tali. She'd been as honest as possible with the other two about her Cerberus implants but even she wasn't sure of the extent of the surgery involved.

She was familiar with every scar, blemish and markings on her lover's bodies and there were no surprises in Mordin's information until she reached the sections on their reproductive health, regularity of cycles and likely chances of child bearing.

"OK, there's being efficient, and this seems a bit too close to the knuckle Mordin, what on earth are you leading up to?" Ana thought reflectively.

Mordin had referenced this last part to a separate set of notes that she hadn't reached yet so she continued reading. "Open the file for Lawson, Miranda. Authorisation, Shepard, Ana, Commander Alliance Navy,"

"Authorisation not recognised, access denied,"

"What the hell EDI?"

"I'm sorry Shepard but you have given an incorrect authority level,"

"Mordin what were you thinking?" Ana's brow creased momentarily in frustration but then she realised it was her mistake in thinking in Alliance terms, "Of course, Mordin you clever old fox, you didn't want my rank to be overridden. Authorisation, Shepard, Ana, Spectre status".

"Authorisation accepted, opening file; Lawson, Miranda,"

**Name: Lawson, Miranda**

**Species: Human. Gender: Female**

**Year of birth: 2150. Age: 35**

**Place of birth: Australia, Earth, Sol System**

**Affiliations: Spectre Ana Shepard/Allied Forces (current), Cerberus (previous)**

As she began to read Mordin's file Ana's eyes opened wide at how thorough the Salarian doctor had been in his research and the recommendations it contained, she blushed heavily at the data regarding her relationship with Miranda.

"Operative Lawson shows significant modification at genetic level, all markers have been optimised to improve all physical traits of general health, regeneration from injury and exertion, intelligence and heightened fitness.

Based on biological samples I also estimate her expected lifespan has been significantly extended beyond normal human ranges, calculations indicate between fifty and seventy years beyond the norm.

Her inherent biotic abilities were also augmented by repeated and prolonged exposure to element zero during infancy. In conjunction with the DNA manipulation present and her physical training this has resulted in an individual in peak condition with recovery levels from biotic exertion comparable with species with natural biotic talents. No biotic implant is present.

Although in excellent health overall the nature of the enhancements has left Lawson with an unexpected and permanent physical side-effect; abnormal cellular mutations to her reproductive system has rendered Lawson infertile. This was confirmed by the results of a medical examination and genetic tests instigated by Miranda herself some time ago from a respected physician on the Citadel."

"Miranda was interested in having children but can't?" That was new information to Ana and as she processed the fact her heart pounded with distress at the current prognosis for her friend, Shepard continued reading.

"Under normal circumstances there would be no further options available other than adoption, however Operative Lawson is in a unique position due to her father's legacy; she has a genetic twin, Oriana. Thanks to Miranda's intervention Oriana wasn't subjected to the same element zero exposure, she shares the same genetic enhancements but without the cellular damage.

If Oriana was willing to undergo a simple and relatively pain-free medical procedure and donate cell samples of her healthy womb and ovaries, replacement organs could be cloned for Miranda and her damaged ones removed and replaced with no possibility of tissue rejection. I calculate that a normal reproductive cycle would resume within three months after surgery.

There is no evidence that any cell degeneration would affect the transplanted organs but developing a preventative course of treatment would be a simple exercise for a competent scientist. Much as I hate to admit this but, in my absence, my recommendation would be Maelon for his genetic expertise and innovative efforts."

"EDI is this data accurate?" Ana demanded.

"Affirmative Shepard, Doctor Solas had me run numerous test scenarios based on the biological samples versus his research and potential treatments for Miranda."

"Is Miranda aware of this research?"

"Negative Shepard, Mordin felt it would be an unnecessary distraction given the circumstances at the time."

"Where is XO Lawson now?"

"Miranda is currently in her office, she has just concluded this morning's operations briefing,"

"Thank you EDI, patch me through to her then route all messages for either of us to Kelly until further notice."

"Confirmed Shepard."

"Shepard, what can I do for you? Has something come up?" Miranda's distinctive Australian tones answered the hail.

"Hi Miranda, you could say that. Can you come to my cabin immediately please? I have some personal information to discuss with you. I've instructed EDI to route your messages through Yeoman Chambers,"

"On my way Ana," came the instant reply, only a close friend would notice the hint of concern in Miranda's voice.

Ana pushed herself out of the chair and made her way to the couch and settled down, this was probably going to be a long and emotional session with Miranda, "Too early for a drink although I get the feeling she's going to need one after this bombshell," she thought. Two minutes later the door hail sounded, "Come in Miranda," she called.

"Please join me down here," Ana gestured to the seat next to her, "You do trust me, don't you?".

"Of course I do Shepard, with my life after all we've been through...but you're really starting to scare me now. What's this all about?"

"I've received an archived message from Mordin and some of the information concerns you and your medical history, some of it makes uncomfortable reading but please keep an open mind. I think he was trying to leave us all the gift of hope," taking a deep breath Ana spoke again, "EDI, copy the data file on Miranda to her omni-tool please." She took hold of Miranda's hand as her friend started to read the information.

Shepard watched in trepidation as a whole range of expressions passed over Miranda's face, her friend finally looked up at her looking shocked but hopeful, Miranda swallowed loudly and with barely disguised emotions in her voice asked, "Is this true? Is it even possible?".

Trying to sound as confident as possible for her dear friend Ana replied, "Mordin believed so and EDI has confirmed the data and projected results,".

At that the usually calm and collected Miranda started to shake visibly and broke down into huge wracking sobs, Ana took Miranda into her arms and held her tight crooning softly into her friend's hair until the shaking subsided, "Would you like me to contact Karin for a sedative for you?" she asked gently.

Pink eyed and red nosed from crying Miranda shook her head, "No, but thank you for the offer Shepard. This is so completely unexpected and you're right it does offer hope for something I'd resigned myself against several years ago."

"I didn't even know about this until today Miri, do you want to talk about it?"

"It's not really a conversation piece even between close friends, especially when they're exes," Miranda admitted ruefully, "I paid for the tests at the Citadel using an alias and they just confirmed my fears that my father's meddling with my genetic structure meant I couldn't have children."

"If you would like time to absorb this information and decide to act on it, I am here for you Miri, as a friend or in any other capacity. I know that Oriana will always help her big sister after all you've done for her. There must be a long list of suitable donors if you wanted a child," Ana offered.

"Thank you Shepard, I couldn't ask for more," Miranda kissed Ana's hand affectionately and then her cheek, "I'll have to take some time to think about this but I'll let you know what I decide," she got up to leave. As she reached the door Miranda looked back at Ana, "Just so you know, there's only one person I've ever met that I consider highly enough to parent a child with and that would be a certain saviour of the galaxy, no-one else has come close to measuring up to you Shepard." she smiled sadly, "But I think that avenue is closed to us and let's face it your personal life is already complicated".

As the door closed behind Miranda, Ana could only stare after her in stunned silence. She was starting to get a headache, she pinched her nose and exhaled loudly. Swallowing some painkillers, she returned to Mordin's message, "Continue with playback."

"Shepard, I assume you will share my information with Miranda and knowing your character you will support her no matter her decision. The following observations were omitted from the report as they are for your knowledge only:

I am aware of your current relationships with Spectre Williams and Admiral Vas Normandy and wish you all the very best wishes for your future happiness with the both of them, the solidity of your relationship is a source of great joy to your friends.

Your temporary relationship with Operative Lawson is also known to me as a result of my research and I wish to share some further information regarding Miranda with you.

During your away missions when she was not included in the squad her anxiety readings were raised to abnormal levels, I assumed this was a general state until a pattern became apparent that these levels only began to reduce again when your personal safety was either confirmed by Dr Chakwas or in person.

EDI's sensors recorded fluctuations in Miranda's hormone levels when in close proximity to you which also included increased heart rate, pupil dilation and temperature rises in her sweat and erogenous zones. Audio recordings from Lawson's cabin capture your name being spoken during sleep.

Despite Miranda's outward behaviour of professionalism, I can only conclude that she still harbours profound feelings for you of a protective and personal nature which will require resolution at some point. End of entry for Miranda Lawson."

"Can my life get any more complicated right now?" Ana thought.

"Shepard, the procedure for fertilising eggs using modified DNA material from a same sex partner is a relatively straightforward process, Dr Solas left detailed notes on this subject should you and Ashley decide to procreate," EDI announced.

"He also left instructions on how to manipulate DNA for you and Tali to also have the possibility to have children, unfortunately it would only be possible for Tali to carry your offspring as the differences between the human carbon and quarian dextro based DNA structure would not allow it to be a reciprocal process. However, any children would have certain advantages with a more robust immune system and the ability to survive on human foodstuffs for a short time."

Ana gulped in surprise at this latest comment from EDI, parenthood was a conversation that had definitely not come up yet with either of her lovers, "Um, thank you EDI, I'll certainly take that information on board for future reference."

"You're welcome Shepard," came the reply, was that a hint of amusement in the ship AI's voice? *The same procedure for you and Ashley could be applied to Miranda as you've offered to help her in any way...".

Shepard started to cough at that comment, "That's not fair EDI, you're twisting my words"

"Not really, I was quoting you directly"

"Leave it EDI, right now"

"Yes Shepard"

"Open the next file, now".

**Name: Samara**

**Species: Asari. Gender: Monogendered**

**Year of birth: Undisclosed. Age: c1000**

**Place of birth: Thessia**

**Affiliations: Asari Order of Justicars (current), Spectre Ana Shepard**

"Samara is an ancient Asari, her life before joining the Justicar's remains undisclosed although her time in the order is documented with frequent articles about her exploits. With such a wealth of experience over a millenia she has achieved the state of calm associated with all asari matrons of that age.

In manner she is reserved and aloof unless she is required to apply the rigid Justicar code, in all my dealing with her during our missions leading to the Collector base I found her pleasant but distant.

The only person she showed any inclination to socialise with was you Commander, whatever private mission you undertook with her, it created a bond that she seems disinclined to sever despite her release from her vow of service to you.

During my research she only displays emotional responses when her daughter Falere or you are mentioned, she is unsurprisingly protective about her surviving daughter while in your case her reactions are more subtle but still noticeable. In an unguarded reply she actually seems to hold genuine affection for you which even indicated a romantic inclination, she even seemed to be blushing when speaking of you.

Physically she is still an active and formidable warrior; her unarmed combat skills are based on a monastic discipline unique to the Justicars while her biotic abilities are far superior to most elite practitioners. Her weapons knowedge and speciality give her a deadly array on which to rely on should her biotics fail to achieve the desired result.

Should you and she ever fulfil your obvious mutual affection and attraction it is unknown if an Asari of such a long lifespan could still carry out the required mind meld in order to conceive a child, such an opportunity for scientific research into the possibility would be a once in a lifetime experience. I do hope I am the one to carry it out, but that is for the future, the last subject is..."

**Name: Shiala**

**Species: Asari. Gender: Monogendered**

**Year of birth: Undisclosed. Age: c400**

**Place of birth: Thessia**

**Affiliations: Zhu's Hope colony (current), Asari Commandos (inactive), Matriarch Benezia (previous)**

"Shepard, I was intrigued by your reports from Feros and the encounter with the Thorian. Such a fascinating creature, it's a shame it had to be killed but I recognise the danger it posed to the colony and any possible expansion they may undertake. I understand that Fai Dan was the only loss from Zhu's Hope and his death was self-inflicted as an act of defiance against the Thorian, this was despite the other colonist's aggressive actions against you whilst under Thorian influence.

It was following your intervention with Baria Frontiers on behalf of the colonists that I was able to contact Shiala to discuss the ongoing health problems resulting from the spore infection, study the effects first-hand and work on potential treatments.

Unfortunately, I have concluded that presently there is no cure available for the damage as the spores have bonded with the Zhu's Hope survivors at genetic level. I have been able to formulate a long-term treatment that will alleviate the symptoms and reduce the headaches and muscle spasms, it will also dampen the effects of shared awareness and sensations. This will manage their condition and allow them to achieve an approximation of the normal life they had before the episode.

Shiala herself displays the most visible of the genetic alterations with the change of skin pigmentation, this is permanent however and no treatment will be able to reverse this particular manifestation. Insufficient data is available to ascertain whether this genetic abnormality would be passed to any children she might have in the future. Her biotics will begin to stabilise as the medication controls the other symptoms.

Disregarding the obvious side-effects of the infection, the colonist's overall health is representative of their various species. The details of any previously undiagnosed conditions that were identified during the course of my study have been passed on to the individuals.

Shepard, during my consultations with Shiala I observed that she displays obvious emotional responses when you are mentioned in conversation; pupil dilation, elevated respiration and heart rate, rise in body temperature and she appears to be distracted. Whereas Miranda attempts to disguise her attraction to you with detachment, Shiala has had no such inhibitions and actively enquired as to your wellbeing at every opportunity.

The melding you shared when she transferred the Prothean Cipher to your mind has left her with a very favourable impression of you and your capabilities Commander. The mercy you showed her, combined with the fact you decided to incapacitate rather than kill the colonists displayed your capacity for compassion. She freely admitted she would be highly receptive if you wished to initiate a relationship with her.

From a medical perspective Shiala is otherwise in peak physical condition for an Asari in her maiden stage. Her years of training as a Commando have resulted in a fit, active and motivated individual with honed weapons, biotics and unarmed combat knowledge. She is less confident of her diplomatic skills, but she is fiercely loyal to the colonists and trying to act with integrity while representing them."

As the audio message came to the end she finished reading the rest of the files lying on her bed. Ana lay there for a moment in silence and looked up through the viewing window above her, the stars rushed by as the Normandy moved swiftly through space. It was going to take some time to absorb the information that Mordin had left her, never mind the question of what, if anything, to do with it all. After realising this was going to be a long and sleepless night she sighed loudly and pushed herself up and off the bed.

Crossing the distance to her desk she poured herself a small whisky and activated the sound system. As classic twentieth century rock started to fill the room she sat down humming along to the tune, opened the bottom draw and pulled out her latest model aquisition; a new ship called the 'Tempest'. The ship it represented had been commissioned for a private venture to the Andromeda System that had departed in several 'Ark' ships in 2185 CE. Liara had been in communication with Alec Ryder, one of the human Pathfinders and found the ship schematics during one of her Shadow Broker transactions.

The ship was a sleek design, more streamlined than the Normandy, designed for scouting rather than as a warship with a much smaller crew, "I'd have loved to see it in person, Joker would have wet himself to have a chance to fly her," she smiled in amusement at the thought then gave all concentration over to the model.


	8. Normandy Updates

In a situation that reflected the victory of the cross-species alliance, the crew of the Normandy had changed considerably during Shepard's convalescence and return to active duty – the frigate had been seconded to extended duties as a Spectre command reporting to the Council itself rather than direct to the Systems Alliance.

This gave Shepard more flexibility in recruitment, which she had leveraged while recovering. The crew was now truly multi-species; the tactical team in the CIC was now comprised of human, asari and turian personnel.

Grace Sato had also joined the permanent crew of the Normandy, the Alliance Technician, was another of the individuals who had encountered Shepard during a mission. She'd been instrumental in constructing communications arrays for intelligence gathering during the war. She was now partnered with Samantha in the CIC as they developed more advanced data gathering and analysis technologies and techniques.

The new acquisitions officer was a female volus, Paliss Dyran, recommended by Barla Von for both her abilities to manage inventory requirements and financial acumen. Miranda was taking full advantage of Paliss's book-keeping skills as they accounted for the ship's expenditures.

Engineers Daniels and Donnelly had transferred to the Normandy's new sister ship the 'Resilience' and their places were now filled by the quarians Kenn and Lia'Vael nar Ulnay, both of whom had been aided by Shepard during the Collector mission. In the short time they'd been aboard these young quarians had proved resourceful and almost as adept as Tali, much to Chief Adams' delight.

"Give them their dues Commander, quarian engineers are hard to beat. The scant resources they had to work with has created some of the most adaptable and innovative people I've ever seen," he stated wearing a huge grin while gazing proudly at his new team members. As with Tali, he'd taken a real shine to these two and taken them under his protective wing.

The company of marines aboard the ship was currently commanded by James Vega, his armour proudly displaying the red and white stripes of his new N7 status. He'd successfully completed his training while Shepard recovered from her injuries. James was working closely with Lieutenant Marie Durand, she was due to assume command when James re-deployed to an N7 specialist squad in the next few months. Ana had requested Marie's transfer to the Normandy following a lengthy correspondence with her, James's departure had only accelerated the need for a replacement officer of marines.

Lt Durand had been in command of a company of marines stationed at a listening post on Nepmos. They had almost been overwhelmed by rachni secreted on a supply shuttle by Cerberus. Her performance during the encounter and subsequent efforts against reaper forces led Ana to actively recruit her for the Normandy, she wanted the best on her ship.

James and Marie's squad now contained two Asari commandos, one of which, Zenifer 'Zen' T'Veyne, was the same huntress saved by Tali and Ashley while searching for Ana. While being treated for her injuries she'd been confined to the same ICU as Shepard until she recovered enough to be transferred to a non-critical ward.

During Zen's time at the ICU she, Ash,Tali and Miranda had built up a rapport and they had encouraged the asari to apply to the Alliance Navy when she was fit again. When discharged from hospital she reported back to Asari Command and she'd been overjoyed to learn that another of her squad had also survived the battle. Following this both she and her friend and fellow survivor, Lyga Peari, had requested transfers to the Alliance and the Normandy.

The last addition to the squad, to everyone's surprise, was a Batarian recruit named Samo Bas'Merr. unlike his species general demeanour, he was softly spoken and friendly with no hint of the anger and distrust so common amongst his people, he was shy and trying to fit into the squad. James and Marie were drilling them all hard to build up squad cohesion and a comradeship between the marines.

Garrus had relinquished his position as Gunnery Officer and also transferred to the Resilience, Shepard had a new gunner in the form of a hulking Krogan warrior from clan Urdnot, Mazk. When Ana had toured the ship on her return she ensured she spoke with all the crew members, new and old, "Don't worry Shepard, it's just another big gun, the Krogan are good with guns no matter the size. Clan Chief Wrex and Aralakh Commander Grunt both speak highly of you and said you always find the best fights, heh, heh!".

"That does seem to be the case Mazk although I'm not sure anything can top the Reapers," she said with a smile, "But welcome aboard anyway!".

Another quarian, Neena'Xulan vas Zeedor had also been recruited to the crew, one of the expanded flight deck personnel list, she was a talented shuttle and fighter pilot. Partnered with Steve Cortez, the intention was for one of them to provide close fighter protection for the UT-47A Kodiak shuttle when it was launched. They could also act as fighter support to the Normandy itself when both the Normandy's F-61 Tridents were deployed.

Every new crew member had been closely vetted before being allowed onboard the frigate, they had received physical and psych evaluations, their backgrounds investigated and cleared for deployment. Liara had also used her Shadow Broker network to further check these individuals.

The Normandy itself had been retro-fitted once again following the destruction of the Reapers and to accommodate the diverse and increased crew.

The life support room previously occupied by Thane now housed the quarian crew members, this had been partitioned to give privacy for the male and female crew. While their previously weakened immunity systems were being bolstered by geth nano-technology the quarians could use these quarters as a clean-room environment if required. As they gradually adapted to the ship's internal atmosphere they were starting to spend increasingly longer periods in which they were able to forego their enviro-suits. As a result, they were often seen around the ship dressed in alliance fatigues adapted to their physique, but their suits were still necessary when leaving the ship.

Deciding to retain the quarian tradition of adopting the name of their new ship upon which they served. Neena'Xulan, Lia'Vael and Kenn had proudly become 'vas Normandy', the same as their famous admiral cum ambassador Tali'Zorah vas Normandy.

Miranda's original quarters, used by Liara as a temporary Shadow Broker base, had been stripped out and re-fitted to provide further crew accommodation. This was primarily being used by the marines as the middle deck location enabled them to deploy quickly to the CIC or cargo decks if needed.

The cargo bay, in addition to tiered bays for the two new Trident fighters and Javelin torpedoes, now had a shooting range facility so all crew members could hone their mandatory shooting skills, this was protected by kinetic barriers to prevent accidental damage to the ship or equipment.

Within the firearms range hydraulic barricades had been installed into the floor. These could rise to waist height and were invaluable in training the marines in teamwork utilising multiple weapon and biotic combinations over varied terrain. These obstacles could be programmed to rise and lower using a pre-selected or randomised sequence to push the marines even further to adapt their offensive and defensive strategies. Primarily intended for training purposes they could also be used as defensive positions if the Normandy was boarded through the cargo bay.

The most extensive refit had taken place on the command deck however as a large war-room was no longer required. The whole area behind the CIC was re-designed and resembled the original Cerberus template. The security station had been removed and the space now contained a small kitchen area and seats where bridge crew could take short breaks. Behind this was the re-located life support controls and further down were personal quarters for the senior staff. The blocked port-side doorway had been re-opened and led through to the XOs meeting room where Miranda held admin briefings, this room led onto her private quarters.

The corridor connecting port and starboard areas had also been reinstated with lift doors installed from this side too. The war-room, now downsized, had been relocated to the site of the old briefing room. It combined both war and briefing room functions. This was Samantha Traynor's domain when not in the CIC as she'd decided to continue serving aboard the Normandy. Leading from the war-room was the vid-comm room.


	9. SR-3 Resilience

The SR-3 Resilience was the newly commissioned sister ship to the Normandy and Ashley had been given command as the most recent addition to the council Spectres. The Resilience was an exact replica of the SR-2 and its current configuration, some of the Normandy crew had transferred to help run the ship in and work through any potential post-build issues it may encounter.

Recruitment for the new ship had been as equally stringent as for Shepard's crew, Garrus was appointed as XO in addition to the Gunnery position. He claimed that he wouldn't trust anyone else with the calibrations for the new Thanix Cannon but the reality was twofold; he was there to look after Ashley for Shepard and secondly the doctor in charge of the medbay was Dr. Chloe Michel, an old acquaintance from his C-Sec days.

Ash had the feeling that Garrus's presence had been partly influenced by Ana but rather than be irritated she wasn't going to look this particular gift-horse in the mouth. Garrus had more experience at command level and had proven to be a resourceful team player. Pragmatically she realised she'd probably need his advice in her first major command until she gained confidence of commanding a large crew.

She and Ana had laughed together at the speed at which Garrus had decided to transfer to the Resilience after he'd learned about Dr Michel's appointment. They knew that he and the good doctor harboured a mutual attraction for each other but had never acted on it, and as Garrus had complained loudly, "Shepard seems to have snapped up all the available women on this ship along the way," they rolled eyes at that and laughed even louder.

Another of the familiar faces amongst Ash's new crew was the commander of the marine detachment, the Salarian soldier Major Kirrahe, his second in command was the Asari officer from Thessia, Lieutenant Kurin. She brought with her another two survivors from the temple mission, the sniper and the last squad member from Outpost Tykis. The surviving members from both their teams now formed the core of the unit.

One huge but joyful surprise appointment was the ship's pilot; Hilary Moreau, aged sixteen and barely out of flight school she was already matching her older brother Jeff's impressive flying abilities. She had originally been feared dead following the invasion of Tiptree, killed by the traumatised Asari Huntress Aeian T'Goni during their pursuit by Reaper forces.

There had been a huge party thrown when it came to light that Hilary had survived and been reunited with Jeff, it was a tearful occasion of joy and loss as the sibling's father had died during the attack on Tiptree.

Aeian believed she had killed Hillary with her own bare hands, but this was a delusion created by a psychotic episode. The trauma was brought on by the loss of her entire team, being attacked by her friend who had been captured and corrupted by the Reapers and the following ordeal of avoiding capture.

When Aeian began to display signs of this breakdown it had been Hilary that had managed to keep them both hidden and fed due to her knowledge of the countryside and local flora. She'd even managed to scavenge clothes for the now semi-responsive asari. Aeian had been showering when the attack began and had fled naked but for a towel with the young farm-girl.

Once they'd been rescued by reinforcements, the information that Aeian had been able to supply about the attack had aided the allies enormously. Hilary had been treated for shock and exposure then evacuated to Alliance space when she'd lost contact with the asari, soon afterwards she'd been enrolled in flight school. Communications had been a real mess which was the reason for the delay in Jeff being informed about his sister's survival.

With psychotherapy Aeian had made a full enough recovery to be allowed to return to light duties, subject to continued counselling sessions. Somehow, she'd had found out about Hilary joining the Resilience, Shepard suspected Liara as the source of this information, and she'd asked for re-assignment to the crew to re-join her. She now acted as Hilary's unofficial bodyguard and was determined to protect the young girl at all costs. They spent almost all downtime together, talking, training in hand-to-hand combat and weapons use and generally hanging out.

Aeian was still a juvenile in asari terms so they were able to connect as young girls can, the bond they created over time proved cathartic for them both and helped them overcome their mutual trauma on Tiptree. Ash was aware of the role that Aeian had assumed in protecting Hilary, although unorthodox this wasn't an Alliance ship and it wasn't affecting operations so she saw no reason to interfere.

Jeff, being more attuned with his sister noticed the way that the two girls acted and looked at each other and wryly thought, "It could be worse having an asari in the family, they can figure it out as they go along but good luck to them," although he did have the older brother conversation with the asari maiden along the lines of. "Look after her and if this works out between you don't break her heart or I'll hurt you...or I'll ask Shepard to do it". Aeian looked suitably abashed and blushed before meeting Jeff's gaze and promising to look after Hilary.

Ashley's cabin occupied the same space as Ana's on the Normandy, the general layout was identical for the private bathroom, desk, couch, bed and lockers. The only difference was in how the two captains personalised their rooms; Ana built model ships and kept pets while Ash collected vintage and antique military firearms. She relaxed by disassembling, cleaning and reassembling these historical pieces that were displayed on the two walls around her desk.

Instead of an aquarium, the port wall opposite her desk was taken up with another display; this time filled with artefacts from the First Contact War, these included both human and turian weapons and armour. In pride of place was a mannequin dressed in her grandfather's dress uniform jacket sporting his medals, this was surrounded by pictures of her family.

Next to her bed was a copy of the same holo-photo that was displayed in Ana's cabin on the Normandy, it was of the three of them together laughing and hugging. Close by was a twisted fragment of Shepard's N7 armour recovered during the search for her body after the SR-1 was destroyed, it was a poignant reminder of loss and happiness regained.


	10. Shadow Broker's Unwanted Package

**Nubian Expanse, Attican Traverse, 19****th**** April 2187 CE**

A few days after her private meeting with Miranda, Shepard was reviewing the daily reports late in the evening when her omni-tool indicated an incoming call from Thessia. Knowing it could only be one person she picked up immediately, "Hey, Liara, haven't heard from you for a while, how's the reconstruction work coming along on Thessia?" she asked brightly.

"Shepard…," came the halting reply, "sorry, this isn't a social call...it's 'official business'. I can't discuss this on a line that could be compromised" Liara rushed through, "can we meet? I'll send you the coordinates."

"Of course, I'll be there as soon as I can Li," Ana agreed instantly, she hadn't heard Liara sounding so agitated for a long time and it worried her that her friend, the Shadow Broker needed her help so urgently. Her omni-tool beeped once the data had come through, looking surprised she recognised the location as being on the Citadel but the address didn't ring any bells. Opening her comm channel she instructed Joker to plot the course then hailed Miranda.

"Miri, sorry to disturb you, just to let you know we're on the way to the Citadel. Liara needs my help,"

"Understood Shepard, do you have any further information as to what to expect?" Miranda asked.

"Only the location, it's not familiar to me though. It's related to her…um, 'business arrangements. I'd like you to come with me please, if you feel up to it?" Ana was trying to give Miranda some space to work through the emotional bomb that was the result of Mordin's data. She'd tried to get her to take a leave of absence, but Miranda had refused, stating she'd rather keep busy although she appreciated the offer.

"Of course, Shepard, it'll be good to get off the ship for a short while, and thank you for the consideration,"

"Commander?" Joker interrupted, "ETA at the Citadel is eight hours, I've already arranged docking at bay D24 when we get there,"

"Thanks Joker, Shepard out," she acknowledged, "Miri, try and get some sleep and I'll see you at oh six hundred hours,"

"Shepard to Vega,"

"Hey Lola, what's up?" Did that man ever sleep? she mused. Together with Lieutenant Durand he was pushing his new squad almost every waking minute. The two marine officers had already discussed potential candidates amongst them for 'N' series training with Ana. They included the two asari who, if accepted, would probably be fast-tracked to N5 at the very least given their previous commando training and battle experience. It would be the first time a species received elite training from another race, Shepard and Vega earlier had kicked around the idea of initiating an exchange programme with other elite forces and had proposed it to Admiral Hackett for his consideration. Marie had been equally supportive once she'd been brought into the discussion.

"James, we're en-route to the Citadel, Miranda will be coming with me when we disembark. I'm appointing you as acting XO until we return, I've no idea how long this will take so allow shore-leave in twenty-four hour shifts amongst the crew. We're meeting Liara so I'm not expecting trouble, I won't need another squad member to accompany us,"

"Understood ma'am, as long as you're happy with that, Vega out," he knew better than to argue with Shepard about security, she was more than capable of dealing with the odds even when she wasn't yet physically at one hundred percent.

Just under eight hours later Shepard stood at the airlock waiting for her XO, Miranda arrived shortly afterwards. The only indication that anything was amiss was the trace of dark circles under her eyes, "Trouble sleeping Miri?" she asked gently, touching her arm briefly.

"A little Shepard, it's still a lot to take in," she admitted.

"You sure you're up to this?"

"As I'll ever be," Miranda nodded and smiled briefly in appreciation for the concerned look on her friend's face, "At least it'll only be you that witnesses any mistakes I make today," she straightened her shoulders.

They stepped forward in tandem as EDI announced their departure, "The commanding officer and XO Lawson have gone ashore, temporary XO Vega has the helm".

It felt good to be on the Citadel again even though they didn't know how long they'd be docked for, if Ana was lucky she'd be able to steal Tali away from the embassy for a few hours. Ash was on a mission in the Terminus System and wasn't due to return to the Citadel for another week or so. Spending personal time with both her girlfriends at the same time was difficult but it made the opportunities even more precious when they happened.

She glanced across at Miranda and saw the tightness around her eyes and the determined face. Miri's mouth was a flat line and it made Ana think of the woman she'd first met two years ago; all business and hard edges. She'd become softer to those she trusted but was still a formidable woman to anyone unfamiliar, Ana was proud of her friend and sometimes wondered what could have been between them under different circumstances.

The two women wore their armour and carried multiple weapons, they weren't expecting trouble but there was no need to be foolish, even the Citadel wasn't immune to unrest. Miranda was by far the more powerful biotic of the two, but Ana wasn't a slouch by any means. As an Infiltrator Class N7 marine she'd undergone the most intensive and brutal training methods available to the Alliance including the use of her own biotic skills.

It was difficult to keep a low profile being so recognisable, as they navigated their way through the crowds they were quite frequently greeted warmly by civilians and saluted by soldiers from multiple races. They tried to maintain their pace without being rude, they acknowledged as many as they could.

As they finally reached the elevator and hit the button to descend to the Citadel Commons they looked at each other in relief as they were the only ones to enter the small compartment.

"Wow, I'd forgotten how intense that can be Miri,"

"Price of fame Shepard, we saved trillions of lives and oddly enough people want to thank us for it," Miranda quipped, she's relaxed slightly now they were away from the throng, but she still looked on edge.

"Who would have thought it eh? Couldn't they just manufacture some collectable action figures and ships instead or even some comics?" Ana joked and then turned serious once more, "once we reach the commons it looks like we'll be travelling along some of the lesser used passageways to a rather dubious part of the city, best be on guard from then,"

"Why doesn't that surprise me Shepard? The Shadow Broker network has always worked at some of the grottiest levels of the Galaxy," came the reply.

They stepped out of the lift and into the lower market district of the commons. After a few minutes of following the directions displayed on Ana's omni-tool they left the brightly lit thoroughfares behind. The corridors here were visibly less well maintained, the shadows became increasingly more oppressive as they progressed, the surroundings took on bleak shades of grey and the smell became noticeably worse. Hands started to stray towards weapons and their eyes were in constant movement as they scanned for potential threats.

"I think we're almost there now, better not be much further. I really don't like this, it's the perfect spot for an ambush," Ana stated tensely, remembering Tali's rescue several years earlier. This looked like it had once been a busy warehousing district before the war. Although repairs were ongoing to the Citadel, successive attacks on the station had meant that public areas and accommodation had priority for reconstruction. Places like this were practically abandoned and had become the locations for many nefarious activities.

Suddenly an indistinct figure stepped out from the doorway from one of the units, "Shepard? Is that you?"

Ana released a breath she hadn't realised she was holding, "Liara?"

The figure nodded quickly and motioned with its head, "Quickly, come inside," they stepped into the nondescript building and the door was closed behind them with a definite grinding and slam of metal upon metal. Looking around in the harsh neon light they saw packing cases piled roof high, some were damaged, and their contents spilled across the floor.

"Shepard...Miranda," Liara started after hugs had taken place, "Thank you for coming so quickly. I apologise for the subterfuge, but this isn't something I could discuss openly even on my network. I'm still analysing all the assets I inherited when I became the new Shadow Broker, when I came across something strange. A journal entry dated to just a few days before we defeated my predecessor, I followed the lead and it brought me here," she continued, "It's better if I just show you, it's through there," she indicated a door to the rear of the room.

Apart from fresh tracks leading back and forth and a few scuff marks that must have resulted from Liara's movements a thick layer of dust covered every surface. The back-room was dimly lit by a small, inadequate strip-light and was mostly taken up with a large rectangular box, the container had an illuminated panel that glowed green.

The shape tugged at Shepard's memory and then she realised what it reminded her of, "Is...is that a stasis pod?"

"Yes Shepard, it is," Liara replied with a look that didn't inspire confidence, "It's the contents that worry me most though," she moved closer and wiped the condensation from the display and window, so they could peer inside. Shepard's eyes widened in shock as she gazed upon the face of a vanquished foe; laying serenely in the pod was the body of the late spectre, Tela Vasir.

"What the hell Liara? She's supposed to be dead,"

"She is Shepard," Liara stated, "According to the Shadow Broker records, agents recovered her body as soon as we left the scene and placed her into stasis immediately before neurological damage could occur," taking a deep breath she continued, "The cause of death was blood loss rather than the injuries themselves. In theory she could be patched up and revived. More to the point what do we do with her?"

"The read-outs confirm Liara's diagnosis Shepard," Miranda added after studying the display panel.

"Fuck!" Ana found it hard to resist the urge to pull the plug on the pod right there and then. She'd never resorted to intimidation or threats no matter the provocation, and as hard as this was she wasn't going to give in to base instincts now. Shepard's parents had encouraged her to act on her positive inclinations, this had culminated in a personal moral code that had stood her well over the years. Mercy and compassion whenever possible, killing was a last resort and should only be in self-defence, not for retribution or gain.

Ana had encouraged her crew to act upon the same principles by leading by example, gently steering them away from decisions that could haunt them in the future. Garrus had been convinced to spare both Dr Saleon and Sidonis rather than killing them for 'justice' or revenge. Jack had seen the truth of Shepard's words on Pragia and tried not let her past define her, in that instance she'd taken pity on Aresh and let him live – they'd both been subjected to countless horrors in that Cerberus facility, but while Aresh was trapped in his past Jack had finally learned to let go of hers with Shepard's help.

Looking once more into the lifeless face of her fellow Spectre, Ana spoke to her two friends, "I'm probably going to regret this but I'm going to hand her over to the Council to deal with," raising a hand to forestall any argument, "before you say anything, yes I know she's responsible for countless deaths in that bombing and killing your contact Li," she sighed and carried on, "but technically she hasn't stepped outside of her Spectre brief, we're pretty much given carte-blanche to act in the Council's best interests using any means we deem necessary. She was protecting her source".

"But that's immoral Ana," Liara protested, "this is political bullshit!"

"I'm not disagreeing Liara, you know I don't operate that way but that's my choice only. We have very few constraints placed on us as Council operatives,"

"So, the end justifies the means?" the asari was losing her temper now.

"Not to me Liara, never to me," Shepard reached out to her friend, "You of all people know me better than that, I don't act as judge, jury and executioner".

Taking a lungful of air Liara forced herself to calm down, "Of course Ana, I'm sorry. I spoke harshly, it wasn't aimed at you," she took Ana'a hand briefly. "It's your decision, if you feel it's for the best".

"Are you both OK with this?" neither Miranda or Liara looked convinced but they acquiesced.

Ana's fingers glided over her omni-tool's keyboard as she punched in the contact for Commander Bailey from C-Sec, "Hello Shepard, what can I do for you today?" he asked when he answered.

"Hi Bailey, I hope you've finally recovered from your wounds OK?" she asked.

"Getting there slowly, thanks Shepard. Not that the Council remembers that I'm still supposed to be on light duties,"

"Like me to remind them?" She asked mischievously.

"Nooo, thank you Shepard, I get the feeling that would just make matters worse,"

"The offer stands anyway," Ana shrugged smiling," Any news about your family on Earth?".

"Nothing so far but the aid agencies are making progress re-uniting people, at least they weren't in any of the major cities hit by the Reapers. There's still hope".

"I can make some enquiries through the Shadow Broker if that'll help? He's used to dealing with Spectres".

"Appreciated if you have the opportunity Shepard, but I'm sure you didn't call just to ask how an old cop is doing. What's up?"

"I have an item to be recovered from this location and delivered to the Spectre office, on my authorisation. This is highly confidential so your most discreet men Bailey, nothing else is to be disturbed on the premises due to an ongoing investigation".

"OK, I have the navpoint, they'll be there in 30 minutes," Bailey confirmed.

"Thanks Bailey, I owe you a beer. Shepard out,"

Shepard hung up then typed in the contact for the asari embassy, "Hi Ly'lia, it's Shepard, is the councillor available please? I have an urgent matter to discuss with her".

"Hello Shepard, it's good to see you back on active duty. We were worried about you," the receptionist replied warmly, "She's in a meeting at the moment, it's scheduled to finish shortly however – I'll let her know you need her".

"Thanks, Ly'lia. I'll be there in about half an hour and will wait until she's ready".

"See you soon in that case," the asari smiled.

Looking at the raised eyebrows of her companions, "What? I spent a lot of time hanging around the embassies while I was on light duties that's all. I got chatting to all the receptionists at one time or the other," she didn't know why she felt the need to justify herself.

"Let's hope Ash and Tali understand," Miranda teased.

"Let's not go any further with that train of thought thank you Miri," Shepard steered the conversation away swiftly, "Liara, can we seal the pod and hide the contents from prying eyes?"

"Of course Shepard, there you go," shielding slid into place over the monitor and window, then the soft click of clamps engaging followed Liara's reply.

"Is there anything in this room that we need to hide or remove before C-Sec arrive?"

"No, it's fine, there's nothing that can link this place to me or my network. I'll configure the door to only admit security personnel".

"Then I think we're good to go, are you joining us on the trek back to civilisation Liara?"

"Not this time Shepard, C-Sec aren't aware of my arrival and I'd like to keep it that way if possible to avoid any awkward questions, I'll be leaving as just as quietly now this business is concluded," Farewell hugs were exchanged after they'd left the building and Liara has engaged the door lock.

"Keep in touch more Li, I really would like to know how the reconstruction is going on Thessia".

"Then come and visit Ana, bring the others too," Liara replied.

Twenty-five minutes later Shepard and Miranda arrived at the Asari Embassy, as they approached the front desk the receptionist stood gracefully and greeted Ana with a warm hug and kiss on the cheek, "Shepard, how's the leg?".

"It's much better now, thanks Ly'lia," Ana replied smiling, "How are your family? Tali asked me to remind you about meeting up for drinks next week".

"They're good, the children and I are just glad to have their mother home again now that she's been posted back to the Citadel".

"That's great news, send my love to her and the little monsters," Ana smiled, turning to Miranda, "Ly'lia and her family practically adopted us while I was recovering, the kids decided they liked having three famous 'aunts' around to play with".

Suddenly realising that she may have inadvertently upset her friend by mentioning children Shepard reached out and squeezed Miranda's shoulder, "Sorry Miri, we can talk later if you like?".

"It's fine Ana," Miranda reassured her, "I'm pleased you're making friends that aren't toting guns or involved with fighting almost unsurmountable odds!"

"You must be the famous Miranda Lawson that Shepard keeps talking about so fondly," Ly'lia smiled and hugged Miranda, "It's you we have to thank for bringing her back from the dead or near death. Twice now, isn't it?"

Miranda couldn't help blushing as Ana winked at her over Ly'lia's shoulder, "Twice it is, although between you and me I think she does it for the attention," Shepard tried to look offended, failed miserably and the three women broke out in laughter.

A beeping noise emanating from Ly'lia's desk drew her away from the other two, "Yes Councillor, Shepard and Miranda Lawson are here now when you're ready for them," a short pause was followed by, "Certainly, I'll show them in momentarily".

"Councillor Tevos is now available for you Shepard, please follow me,"

"What mood is she in today Ly'lia?"

"Good so far, so don't go and spoil it you," Ly'lia replied with a smile, "She'll be pleased to see you".

They were efficiently ushered into Tevos's office where the counsellor waited for them, "Thank you Ly'lia, I'll let you know when we've finished our discussion".

As the door closed behind them Counsellor Tevos got up and gave Shepard a hug, "It's good to see you Ana, but I'm sure Ly'lia's already said as much," she smiled at Miranda, "It's good to see you too Ms Lawson".

She could see the question on her friend's lips, "Tevos has become a good friend over the last few months Miri, she's been very supportive of us all behind the scenes. The Asari and Alliance are working much more closely together these days".

"We only stand on ceremony in public Miranda, we're much less formal in private," Tevos added with another smile as she indicated for them to sit down, "Now then Shepard, what can I help you with?"

"It's a rather delicate matter, sorry Tevos," Ana stated ruefully, "Acting on information from our old friend the Shadow Broker, we were able to recover a stasis pod from an abandoned warehouse in one of the lower wards".

"Oh, yes…and why does that concern the council?" asked Tevos with a raised eyebrow.

"The pod is active and contains the body of Tela Vasir".

"Ah, that explains why she was never found after your confrontation, but apart from us needing to arrange repatriation to Thessia for a funeral I don't see the need for all this secrecy".

"This is where it gets complicated – according to the Shadow Broker's records she could, in theory, be revived if she received medical attention," Shepard continued, "His agents recovered her body immediately after we left the scene and their quick actions meant that no cellular degradation took place".

"Shepard's summary is correct counsellor, the injuries were extensive but not individually life-threatening, "Miranda added, "Re-starting the heart to restore circulation, transfusions to replace blood loss and surgery to repair the wounds should be enough to bring Vasir back".

"Hmm, now I understand your caution in the matter Shepard. We read your report on the attack on Dr T'Soni and the bombing at the Dracon Trade Centre. This will have to be discussed with my fellow councillors and we'll let you know what we decide to do".

"A lot of innocent people died that day just to stop one woman, she nearly killed Liara and not for want of trying" Ana retorted sharply, "Just to protect the damned Shadow Broker!".

The councillor placed a placating hand on Shepard's shoulder, "We know that Spectres have had dealings with him in the past Shepard, but the nature of her involvement with him was hidden from us".

She continued gently, "In the centuries since the Spectres were formed, without exception each one has had to make hard decisions to preserve galactic peace. They all have innocent blood on their hands, directly or indirectly, even you my friend," with compassion in her eyes she added one last comment, "We've followed your progress closely Ana and understand every decision you've made no matter the outcome, your efforts to preserve life at every opportunity has been noted".

As she accepted Tevos's comments Ana's faced briefly contorted in shame and regret as she remembered the countless Batarians she'd had to sacrifice to delay the Reapers and the Alliance ships lost to save the council.

"I'm sorry Tevos, that was out of line".

"No need to apologise Shepard, your friend was attacked. I'm more than aware of how protective you are about those you care for and I understand completely, "Tevos smiled knowingly at Shepard, then Miranda, "Your friends were there for you when the council and Alliance weren't but should have been, much to our shame".

"I'll convene a council meeting as soon as I can to discuss the matter, it may take a few days however. Can you remain on the Citadel that long in case we need you to give your account?"

"We're only following up leads in the Terminus System at the moment, nothing concrete so that shouldn't be a problem," Ana replied thinking of Tali and some private time, "We can re-supply while we're here and see if there are any new weapon and armour mods available for us to field test".

"Then I think that's all for the moment, I'll not keep you and Miranda any longer. Give my regards to Tali'Zorah and Ashley please Shepard," as Ana and Miranda were escorted out of the office by Ly'lia, the councillor looked up from a datapad and addressed Ana once more, "The recommendation you submitted is under the council's consideration at the moment you'll be glad to know".

"Thank you, councillor, that's appreciated. You know I wouldn't have made it lightly and I can't think of anyone more suitable for the role".

The door closed behind them with a small click and they stood in the reception room once more, "Will we see you, Ash and Tali soon Shepard?" Ly'lia asked smiling.

"It'll be a few weeks for all three I'm sorry, Ly'lia. Between our missions Ash and I are away from the Citadel more often than not again," she replied with a rueful look, "It was a lot easier before she took command of her own ship".

"That's a shame but completely understandable under the circumstances. We'll see whoever is around then," the asari turned to Miranda, "Now we've finally been introduced, the invitation is also to you too Miranda, I'll hope we'll see you too".

"I…uh, thank you Ly'lia. The offer's appreciated but I don't know whether I'll be able to come," Miranda replied haltingly.

Looping her arm through her friends, Shepard chipped in, "I'll make sure she's available Ly'lia".

As the friends left the embassy Miranda turned to Ana and aired the questions that Ana knew were coming, "What the hell was that all about? What recommendation and why did Tevos look at me like that?"

"I can only guess at the look Miri, but Tevos is a very astute woman with sources of info that I bet rival Liara's," she replied honestly, "She sees and senses a scary amount of detail about people, it's why she's so good at her job. Once you get past the official persona and get to know the woman behind it she's also one of the kindest, most compassionate people I've come across. Will of iron and backbone of steel too though, I'd rather fight a thresher maw again than cross Tevos," she grinned.

"I'll take your word for it, I respect the councillor already but stop beating around the bush Shepard, it's not helping," Miranda stated.

"OK, ok, no need to be sharp about it Miri," Ana smiled, "I think she's under the impression that we're more than friends.".

"What the fuck gave her that 'impression' about us Shepard?" Miranda growled, her face screwing up in anger.

Backpedalling as subtly as she could without seeming to be, "The fact that you; a) Almost tore London apart to try and find me, b) Raced across half of the known galaxy to find the equipment and data to save my life again, c) Then worked yourself half to death putting me back together and pretty much never left my side until I started to be awake more than unconscious," she smiled at her friend, "It's a major set of clues don't you think? Is she wrong to come to that conclusion?"

Her hands balled into fists and blue biotics flaring around them, Miranda was shaking in absolute fury now, "If it's so fucking obvious to everyone else, what do think, you infuriating woman?".

Shoulders slumping in surrender, Ana replied gently, "Yes, I think it's true Miri. Despite everything that's been going on, you've been too noble to say anything in fear of hurting Ash and Tali but you have feelings for me".

In a split second all anger washed away from Miranda leaving her shaking and pale, with tears threatening to cascade down her face she fearfully asked, "And how do you feel about me Ana?"

"Miri, you are one of the most capable, complex, intoxicating women I've ever met, I'd truly be lost without you. Between you, Ash and Tali you give me a reason for going on, the only thought that kept me alive after destroying the Reapers was to see you all again. I haven't said anything to you as you seemed to show no interest…Yes, Miranda bloody Lawson, I love you too!"

Ana caught Miranda in her arms as her friend sank to her knees, the tears were unashamedly running down her face now as she clung to Shepard like a drowner to a rock. With her face pressed against Ana's neck the raven-haired woman sobbed, soaking the Commander's collar with hot tears. Eventually she lifted her face to Ana and smiled at her in pure joy, "I thought I'd lost you Ana, when the last piece of debris was lifted off you, you were hurt so badly again. All I could think of was saving you, nothing else in the galaxy mattered".

"Well, Ms Lawson, you seem to have pulled that miracle off again but at least I was only mostly dead this time," Ana quipped trying to make Miranda smile again, she has such a beautiful smile seen far too rarely for her liking.

"Really? A stupid film reference to a twentieth century classic is the best you can come up with at a time like this?" Miranda laughed.

"In case you'd forgotten, I don't write poetry for a living, I blow things up or shoot them," Ana grinned, "Oh hell, let's see if this is more to Ms Lawson's preference," she placed her hands gently to either side of Miranda's face and pulled her in for a long, tender kiss instead.

When they eventually pulled free long enough to catch their breath, Miranda looked at Ana in pleasure, "Yes, Commander, that was definitely more to my taste," as realisation hit home she suddenly looked scared, "Shit, Tali and Ash are going to kill me!"

"Not necessarily Miri, but I expect them to give you a bit of grief to begin with but it's not completely unexpected. After all you've done for us they're actually quite fond of you and not oblivious to your affection for me. As I said some of your actions haven't been subtle about it," she charged on, in for a penny etc, whatever that meant, "There was more information about you from Mordin that I had to share with them first and we had a long and frank discussion about you afterwards".

"And?"

"They decided we should leave things as they were, unless something like this happened and you finally admitted your feelings to me," she looked sheepish, "Then they said I had to let my heart decide on what happens next".

"They, they..don't mind?" Miranda asked incredulously.

"Only if they feel left out of the sex," Shepard grinned, "They were very clear on that, just because we serve on the same ship doesn't mean you have a monopoly. We have to go home regularly for us to share. Oh crap, we're going to need a bigger bed".

"They also sent you these with their blessing," Ana fumbled around inside the collar of her armour and pulled out her dog-tag chain, Miranda was used to seeing three tags hanging from the fine chain but this time there were more. Shepard carefully unclipped the chain and almost ceremoniously removed three pieces and pressed them into Miranda's hand.

"Here are tokens of our love Miri, a tag from each of us. Keep them close to your heart as we keep you close our ours," Shepard's voice started to break with emotion and she gently closed her friend, no, lovers, fingers around the tags.

If Miranda wasn't already an emotional wreck after the last few days, she certainly was now and started to cry again, "Oh Shepard," and just melted into the redhead's arms again, which was almost comical as they were both still fully armoured. "I've never had a more precious gift, I'll keep them safe with my life," she covered Ana's face with kisses, "I'll have to request copies of my tags to share with Ash and Tali but you can have yours now," she too reached into her armour and pulled out her own dog-tag chain.

A few minutes later they were sat slumped side by side against the wall arms around each other, Miranda's head was resting on Ana's shoulder, her hair lay across her face like a curtain, "Shepard?" she started.

"Hmm?"

"You've helped me make a decision I was struggling with," she murmured.

"What's that Miri?"

"I'd like to try Mordin's treatment, I'd like the chance to have children even if I decide not to. At least then it would be my choice," Miranda sniffled.

"Then we need to contact Oriana, do you think she'd like to be an aunt some day?" Shepard smiled at her.

"More to the point Shepard, would you like to be a mother?" Miranda teased with a mischievous glint in her eyes.

Ana gulped without breaking eye contact, "Oh God, I am so fucked, aren't I?"

"Later Shepard, but not too much later," Miranda purred.

**Two Hours Later: Shepard's Apartment, The Silversun Strip, Citadel:**

Shepard and Miranda lay naked, entwined amongst the twisted sheets of the bed, glistening with sweat after their lovemaking. Ana was slowly trailing her fingers up and down Miranda's abdomen watching the goose-bumps rise on her lover's toned body as they both cooled down. Her bed-mates nipples started to harden again from the cool air and as a reaction to the caresses, Miranda pulled Ana's face towards her own and kissed her hungrily.

"God, I missed you Shepard," she said with a satisfied look on her face.

"Really Miri? I'd never have been able to tell…you never climaxed that quickly before, did you have a dry spell without me?" she replied smirking, "Ow, that hurt!" as Miranda pinched the nerve cluster under her arm in retaliation for the comment.

"Serves you right Shepard," she said with mock severity, "and yes, for your information it had been a while. There's not been anyone else since you and us".

"I'm sorry if I hurt you back then Miri, it certainly wasn't intentional. You'd made it pretty clear at the beginning of our 'thing' that we were only a temporary item." Ana said looking abashed.

"I know Shepard, I didn't blame you. Tali is so sweet and we could all see your attraction to each other. I just didn't want to admit how much I'd fallen for you myself, long-term relationships weren't on my agenda until you came along," Miranda kissed Ana reassuringly, "That's all done with now, time for a new adventure in my life".

"Here's to my death and it bringing us together!"

"Idiot woman; remind me again why we love you?"

"We have about forty minutes before Tali gets home, let me show you again why you love me Miri," Ana said lasciviously as she slid her hand between Miranda's thighs and towards the patch of damp curls at their apex and the wetness they framed.

Thirty minutes later Miranda was sat at the kitchen breakfast bar as Ana made them coffee, they'd showered together after making love once more, both had damp hair and looked slightly pink from the hot water. Miranda had borrowed hoody and sweatpants from Ana so she didn't have to sit around in her under-armour compression underwear.

The trail of discarded armour and clothes that had led from the door to the bedroom had been picked up and tidied away, armour and weapons stored in their respective secure lockers.

As she sipped on the hot drink Miranda looked around at the apartment, she'd only been here once before when Shepard had hosted a party for her crew during their enforced shore-leave the previous year. "This place is fantastic Shepard, I can see that you've started to personalise it since I was here last".

"That's mainly Tali to be honest Miri, she's here the most of the three of us," she continued, "Since becoming the Quarian Ambassador this is her home on the Citadel and she's been slowly adding personal touches to the place, probably because she knows Ash and I would fill it up with the sort of clutter we have in our cabins," she said smiling.

"Sensible woman and with good taste in so many things," Miri laughed and clasped Ana's hand affectionately.

They sat facing each other companionably as they sipped coffee, when Miranda suddenly looked puzzled as she remembered something from earlier, "Shepard, what was Tevos's other comment about, a recommendation of some kind?"

"Ah," Shepard replied, "That would be the matter of my nomination of another new human spectre, namely you Miri".

"What are you talking about Shepard?" Miranda looked shocked, "Are you trying to get rid of me?".

"No, nothing like that Miri, far from it. The spectres suffered a significant number of losses during the war and I was asked to evaluate potential candidates to recruit as replacement operatives," she continued, "We contacted all the allied governments for their input and slowly worked through the list of asari, turian, krogan, salarian, volus and human nominees. The quarian, elcor and batarian governments are concentrating on rebuilding so decided to decline".

"We managed to whittle it down to the most suitable candidates with a good mixture of races so all felt included in the process. Humanity has both myself and Ash already, so we decided to consider only one more candidate at the moment and that, my love is you,"

"But why me? You have plenty of suitable soldiers that would happily volunteer, Vega for example or Marie," Miranda protested.

"That's exactly why you Miri, we don't need soldiers – we need operatives. You have the necessary intelligence, resourcefulness, combat skills and leadership experience. Your commission in the Alliance is still fairly recent so you aren't hung up on military protocols. Hell, you'll probably be better at this that me or Ash!"

Their discussion carried on animatedly for a few more minutes until they were interrupted by the sounds of the door opening, "That'll be Tali," Shepard smiled, "Are you ready for this Miri?"

Miranda forced herself to relax and nodded, "As I'll ever be, it's not as if there's a backdoor for me to escape through!"

Ana laughed at that and took Miranda's hand in her own, pulled her to her feet and started to lead her towards the door to greet Tali.

Miranda hung back nervously as the petite quarian stepped through the door and was immediately enveloped in Ana's arms, "Shepard!" she squealed happily and hugged back enthusiastically.

As the door closed behind Tali the quiet hiss of seals engaging could be heard, she started to reach for her helmet but was stopped by Ana, "Here, let me do that for you love," Shepard beamed.

"Shepard, is that safe for Tali?" Miranda asked in a concerned tone.

"Hi Miranda," Tali waved over Ana's shoulder as the commander was carefully releasing her helmet seals, "I've been able to acclimatise to the apartment with help from the geth technology, although for more public spaces the suits are still necessary. Our immune systems are slowly adapting to external climates, but we have a long way to go before we can dispense with them completely, from a health standpoint anyway".

"There, that's the face I wanted to see," Ana grinned and kissed Tali deeply.

As the lovers released each other from the embrace, Shepard stepped to the side which granted Miranda her first look upon Tali's face, unobscured by a visor.

"Oh, my god Tali, you're, you're beautiful," Miranda blurted out in wonder.

"Why thank you Miranda. Coming from you, I'll definitely take that as a compliment," she smiled, "Our Commander certainly seems to have very good taste in women. And thank you for your concern".

Tali stepped towards the ex-Cerberus operative and took hold of one of her hands, with her free hand she reached up to cup Miranda's face tenderly, "I don't think Ash and I truly expressed our gratitude to you for saving Ana again," she leant forward and kissed Miranda on both cheeks then rested her forehead against the humans. "You brought our love back to us Miri, kept her safe and hid you own feelings away. You don't have to do that anymore, welcome to our family". With tears threatening to fall from her luminous eyes she pulled Miranda into a tight hug, she felt the taller woman first tense then relax into her arms with an audible sigh. Miranda shook as she cried quietly into Tali's shoulder. Ana watched the brief exchange and as Miranda relaxed she took the two women into her own arms and held them close.

Ana went upstairs to 'help' Tali out of her envirosuit, coming back down a few minutes later looking slightly flushed and grinning broadly. While Tali was relaxing in the shower Ana efficiently prepared a meal for all three of them, carefully ensuring no cross-contamination between the food for the quarian and humans.

Miranda watched spellbound at Shepard's kitchen skills, "Don't look so surprised Ms Lawson," she teased, "I love cooking, I just don't get much of a chance on deployment. I picked up the cooking bug years ago from an ex-girlfriend who was a chef. Learning to cook for Tali was a challenge though, but she seems to enjoy whatever I make for her".

"You've no idea what a novelty fresh food is after eating nutri-paste for so long," Tali added smiling as she entered the kitchen looking refreshed and relaxed. After showering she'd changed into a light, summery dress that was fitted perfectly to accentuate her figure but had a flowing skirt that allowed unrestricted movement to her legs.

Ana served the food after Tali and Miranda had sat themselves at the table and wine had been poured. Tali had a look of pure delight on her face as she ate the meal Shepard had prepared for her, Miranda looked up at Ana, "Oh, my, god Shepard, this is delicious. I am so going to sack the chef when we back to the ship and appoint you in the kitchen instead!"

Ana laughed at the comment, "Thanks Miri, but somehow I don't think the Council will see that as optimising the use of one of their Spectres!"

After finishing the meal they'd made their way into the living room and the three of them were now sat curled up together on the long sofa in front of the fire, Ana in the middle

"Keelah, Miranda, I was so scared as I walked up to our door. I had no idea of what I was going to say to you or how I felt about this,"


	11. A Ghost From The Past

**Valhallan Thresholds, Terminus Systems, 11****th**** March 2188 CE**

Their intel had been dangerously inadequate; the only word that Shepard could come up with right at this moment to describe this mission was 'Clusterfuck'. It was supposed to have been an incision strike against a small slaver outpost to extract data, a quick in and out op. The slavers were organising themselves into a loose confederation in the chaos after the war, and this station was supposed to have files that would help track down their bases.

The number of slavers present had either been seriously underestimated or the intel was outdated, either way It had turned into a ferocious firefight between Shepard's squad and the misery peddling scum.

Ducking behind some packing cases Ana aimed a biotic throw attack against the closest Batarian, he was propelled backwards into the wall behind him with bone crunching force, the two slavers either side of him were only partially affected but it gave her enough time to open fire with her heavily modded Sabre assault rifle which finished them. "Shepard to Durand, I need a sitrep, what's your status?" she spoke into her comm.

"Pushing forward ma'am, laying down suppressing fire where possible so our infiltrators can harry the flanks, out"

"Acknowledged, keep it up Marie, Shepard out", a movement in her peripheral vision alerted her to an attack that she only just managed to block with her forearm. Hissing in pain from the jolt she countered with her omni-blade and thrust the energy weapon deep into the chest of the slaver, "Bastard" she snarled as her opponent slid off the blade and onto the ground kicking feebly, she put a bullet into his head as a way of mercy.

Her shields were flickering as they re-charged so she took the decision to cloak rather than find somewhere to take cover for a few minutes, stowing her rifle she switched to pistol and omni-blade. She was able to eliminate a few more slavers at close range, appearing behind them as her cloaking timed out and either shooting them point blank or clinically cutting them down with the blade. She finally made it to the door and started to hack the lock, keeping alert to any other attacks, she acknowledged two of her infiltrator marines as they de-cloaked and joined her on the steps leading down into the base.

"Use cryo ammo and try not to destroy any terminals or data-pads. Zen, warp any bastard that doesn't try to surrender immediately, Lyga you're on overload," both soldiers acknowledged her instructions with a synchronised "Aye, aye ma'am".

As the door finally opened Ana threw a couple of lift grenades into the darkened room beyond to disorientate any waiting slavers. Once the explosions had sounded she spoke a quiet command, "Go, go, go!" and the three cloaked in unison and entered the room, weapons at the ready.

Ruthlessly they fought their way through the various corridors and rooms, the slavers showed no inclination to surrender and Ana and her squad showed no quarter as a result. As they secured the base comms room Ana let the body of the final Batarian fall to the floor and wiped blood from her visor, "Lyga, start mining every terminal you can unlock, Zen guard the door, make sure we're not disturbed".

Shepard walked to the main console and tried to hack the security protocols without any luck, the encryption here seemed way too overboard for a slaver set-up, "EDI, this is Shepard, can you remote hack this terminal?"

"Affirmative Shepard, although it may take a few minutes," came the instant reply.

"We'll hold the room, take as much time as you need, Shepard out".

"Commander, this is Durand, come in, over,"

"What is it Marie?" she asked.

"The compound is now under our control, but we have a situation here that needs your attention soonest, you'll have to see it for yourself ma'am"

"Acknowledged, I'll be there shortly, send another marine to my current location to back up Zen and Lyga, Shepard out"

"Aye, aye ma'am, ETA for their back-up is two minutes, Durand out,"

Turning to the two marines with her, "Once EDI has confirmed she's extracted the data and you've ripped everything from the terminals and data-pads I want you to rig this place for remote destruction".

"Aye, aye ma'am,"

A soon as the requested marine had arrived and been given his orders Ana set off to join her lieutenant and whatever problem she'd found; her HUD gave her the coordinates and a navigable route through the base.

Stepping back outside into the weak sunlight, she could taste smoke and smell the copper tang of blood on the air, combined with the pervading odour of burned meat, incendiary rounds and incinerate attacks weren't subtle but they helped get the job done. Several marines were checking downed slavers for any survivors while others were watchfully monitoring the perimeter.

She glanced at the holo-map and turned towards some decrepit outbuildings, as she got closer Marie started to walk towards her and saluted, "Ma'am, it's not pleasant in there. The slavers weren't here on their own, there are bodies and survivors",

"How many?"

"At least a hundred in total, living and dead. Survivors are in various conditions,"

"Fuck! OK, we can't leave them here. We'll have to evac them to the Normandy as quickly as possible. The most able-bodied will have to help carry the others, we don't have enough marines to spare from the perimeter. DNA scan the dead so we can inform the authorities about them,"

"Shepard to Cortez, we need an immediate evac on civilians from this nav-point, Neena is to fly escort for the shuttle this time,"

"Aye, aye ma'am, launch in two minutes,"

"Shepard to Chakwas, Doctor we have a large number of civilians that need urgent medical attention, we'll shuttle them to the Normandy in groups as quickly as we can,"

"Understood Shepard, we'll set up in the cargo bay as it's the biggest space we have, Chakwas out,"

"Shepard to Lawson, all able bodied off-duty personnel are to report to the cargo bay and act as orderlies under instruction from our medical staff,"

"Acknowledged Shepard, I'll see if we can also free up any non-critical crew from their duties,"

"Thanks Miranda, this is going to take all available resources, Shepard out,"

"OK, Marie, show me," Ana swallowed hard as she knew this wasn't going to be good. She was led to the doorway of the first building but before she got there she caught a lungful of the stench; sweat, bodily waste and the sickly-sweet smell that meant infected wounds and decaying flesh.

Slaves were packed into the building with barely enough room to stand, humans, asari, turians and even some drell, height differences might have indicated age and sex but that was the only clue. Eyes stared at the marines with various levels of fear, hope and in the worst cases complete disassociation from events.

"The next building's exactly the same Commander," Marie added.

"Poor bastards, OK Marie, let's get them out of there as quickly but gently as possible. If there are any urgent rites that need conducting for the dead get them done asap once they're scanned. After that I want these buildings raised to the ground, it'll have to do for a grave for them."

"Aye, aye ma'am," Durand started to issue orders to her marines.

Ana shook her head in frustration, after the Reaper war and all the suffering they still had this shit to deal with. She picked up the distant hum of engines as the Normandy's shuttle began its approach while the fighter prowled above it.

The platoon of marines was gently steering the group of liberated slaves towards the cargo ramp of the Normandy, inside Dr Chakwas and her medical staff had set up a triage station. There they would treat as many as possible in the temporary hospital with only those in the most need being transferred to the medbay proper. The marine's corpsmen and women would aid in the treatment and all off duty crew acted as help as directed.

Shepard had studied military history as part of her officer training, these poor suffering souls reminded her of the harrowing images of the concentration camp survivors from the twentieth century Second World War. They were gaunt, hollow eyed and clothed in rags. The only real difference between the two was the multitude of races that were represented here, the Batarians weren't picky when it came to slaves. It sickened her to her stomach and she felt bile rising in her throat, at least her cousins had been spared this even if the escape was death.

Scanning the surroundings for signs of further trouble she failed to notice one of the ragged figures stare in her direction, stumble, then painfully shamble towards her. She was alerted by a scuffling noise behind her and as she spun around, assault rifle raised in readiness she found herself staring into a pair of eyes widened in shock and fear…grey eyes.

The ragged shell of a human hesitantly reached a hand out towards the Spectre, the figure was emaciated and filthy, the face was skin tightly stretched over narrow cheekbones and lined by hardship, its hair was close cropped to the scalp and showed hints of grey amongst the dark. The cranial implant was obscenely visible, surrounded by red, angry scar tissue.

"A…Ana?" Came a barely audible croak as a seldom used voice tried to make itself heard.

It was then Shepard realised that she was looking into the face of a woman, before then the starved condition had rendered her sexless. It was those eyes, those beautiful light grey eyes that shocked Ana, the last time she'd seen similar ones it had been a lifetime ago on another planet and she'd been in love for the first time.

As the figure staggered back despondently Ana's mind finally broke free of its paralysis, "Elspeth?" she whispered.

The woman's chin rose slightly and Ana could see in the profile the face of the girl she'd fallen in love with, grey eyes suddenly rolling back into her head Elspeth collapsed in a boneless heap. Shepard managed to catch her at the last moment and clutching the stricken woman in her arms started to sprint to the Normandy issuing orders into her comms as she moved.

"Lt Durand, secure the evac corridor and continue to protect the civilians, if any more hostiles show up eliminate with prejudice unless they surrender. I have an emergency and am inbound to the medbay".

"Aye, aye ma'am. Durand out".

"Dr Chakwas, I need you to meet me in the medbay urgently, my ETA is five, no four minutes. I have an emergency". Ana glanced down at the limp woman in her arms, the pale, waxy complexion of her face and eyelids moving weakly. She urged herself into a faster sprint using her biotics to boost her speed, she'd pay for it later having used her powers extensively during the earlier firefight.

"Commander are you injured?" came the doctor's reply.

"Negative Dr, I have one of the captives, she's collapsed and I'm bringing her in for treatment," Ana stated firmly.

"Then bring her to the triage station and we'll see to her there Commander,"

"Negative, I need you to supervise her treatment personally Doctor,"

"We have a lot of people to see Commander, they all need us,"

"Doctor….Aunty Karin…I need you to look at her please," Ana's voice was breaking.

"Ana?" came the worried reply.

"I….I think it's Elspeth, Aunty,"

"Elspeth?" there was a pause, "Elspeth…the girl from Mindoir?"

"Yes," Shepard replied emotionally.

"I'll be waiting for you in the medbay, Chakwas out," Karin started to rattle off orders to her staff so she could leave the cargo bay, "EDI, scan the woman that Shepard's bringing in as soon as she's in range please, I want a full medical analysis as quickly as possible".

"Affirmative Doctor,"

Less than four minutes later Ana reached the Normandy and a path had been cleared for her to get to the elevator and the crew deck. Karin and two of her staff were ready for them as soon as the medbay doors opened, the doctor indicated a free bed and Ana laid the unresponsive woman down as gently as possible then stepped back to allow the medical team to tend to her.

"We need to incubate her now and get some fluids in," the doctor snapped out instructions calmly," She's dehydrated and severely malnourished which are the most immediate of problems," turning to the Commander, she ordered her out of the room and promised to update her later after they'd stabilised the woman.

Several hours later Ana was reviewing the mission reports with Lt Durand and Miranda in the meeting room when she received a message to come to the medbay when available.

"So, what's the final tally Marie?" Shepard asked.

"We have three injured but nothing serious, they'll need to be on light duties a day or two. Forty-eight slavers dead, no survivors or prisoners. Eighty-three liberated captives currently undergoing treatment of which thirteen are critical and it's touch or go whether they'll make it ma'am," came the answer, Marie had proved to be a valuable asset to Shepard's team and she seemed to be thriving in the new environment under Spectre command.

"Do we have enough medical supplies to last until we can rendezvous with the hospital ship Miranda?"

"Currently yes Shepard, although we'd better not run into any more trouble until we can replenish our stocks," her XO replied.

"We can try Miranda," she smiled, "How did the squad perform this time Marie".

"As a team, very well indeed ma'am, Zen and Lyga work seamlessly together as usual, their 'N' training has refined them even better than hoped. Samo providing fire support to the team works well and Mazk is a tank as expected. The whole squad has gelled to the point that they've even started to anticipate each other,"

"Excellent work Marie, I know how many hours you've put in with them to get to this stage," Ana congratulated the marine, "How did Samo react to fighting other Batarians?" she felt she had to ask.

"No hesitation ma'am, I get the feeling he was just as disgusted by the slavers as the rest of us,"

"That's good to hear, just refer him to Kelly if you think he needs counselling about it. That goes for any of the crew given what they've just witnessed and helped deal with," she dismissed her officers and prepared herself to go to the medbay and what awaited her there".

The door to the medbay hissed open as Ana approached them, Karin was waiting for her inside looking tired, the lights had been dimmed to give the patients some relief from the harsh lights and aid sleep.

"Shepard..Ana, there you are, I was starting to worry about you,"

"Mission reports don't write themselves aunty,"

"No, that they certainly don't,"

Looking towards the small figure in the end bed Ana swallowed hard and asked the questions she was terrified of, "How, how is she aunty? Will she live?"

"Sit down Ana, please," the doctor urged gently, "She's not out of the woods yet but I'm optimistic sweetie, she seems to be a fighter. Although I'm surprised she's managed to hold on this long, her bodies endured that much punishment. She's malnourished almost to the point of organ failure which isn't helped by dehydration, she also has several major infections from untreated injuries. We have her on a course of antibiotics to fight the worst of it, but it'll take a long-term treatment to get them clear. She's being rehydrated and intravenously fed nutrients which will help her body to stabilise,"

Karin continued, "You were right, the DNA scan matched to Elspeth Walker kidnapped in the raid on Mindoir, we're trying to trace any living relatives," she paused, "She's been through a lot Ana, she's not the girl you knew….and she's been abused, not recently, but there are clear signs of old internal injuries,"

Rage coursed through Ana at that last comment, "Did she….were there…"

"Children Ana? No, she wasn't used for breeding if that's what you mean. Rape either actual as in this case or the threat of it is a powerful weapon used to subjugate those weaker than the perpetrator. Personally, I'd string the gutless bastards up," Karin wasn't one to make controversial comments so this surprised Shepard, "I need to check on the others Ana, then I'm going to try and catch a few minutes sleep, call me if her condition changes though,"

Shepard didn't react when the door behind her opened, then closed, she did however start when a warm hand caressed her neck and felt the kiss on the top of her head, Miranda had come looking for her lover and instinctively known where to find her.

"I guessed where you'd be Shepard," Ana could hear the smile in her voice but there was an undertone of something else, uncertainty? "Who is she Ana and what is she to you to earn such a display of devotion?" the question was gentle but probing.

"Her name is Elspeth, Elspeth Walker. She's a ghost from my past Miri, the first girl I ever loved, and I failed her," she sighed.

"Failed someone, the all-conquering Shepard? That doesn't sound like you. What happened?" her XO asked.

"Mindoir happened Miri, she was my girlfriend and she was taken by the bastards. My family were murdered, and I was left for dead. I killed for the first time during the raid," she flinched as she remembered the events, "It's why I enlisted in the Alliance as soon as I was old enough. I volunteered for every fight against the Batarians hoping that one of the missions would lead me to her. It was five years after that before I started to lose hope and tried to move on,"

"I read about Mindoir in your file, but she's not mentioned anywhere. Whatever happened wasn't your fault Shepard - you were only sixteen and still in school," Miranda slid her arms around Shepard to console her, Ana leaned back into the warmth and felt the slight bump that was developing within Miranda's slim frame.

It had been eight months since Miranda's operation to implant the cloned womb and ovaries. They'd waited anxiously for the all clear from signs of rejection and her monthly cycle to re-start, which it had, almost exactly as Mordin's data predicted. After a hope filled wait Miranda's fertility levels were confirmed, and they'd proceeded with fertilising one of her eggs with modified DNA from Ana. The resulting pregnancy was now in it's fourth month and just starting to show. Apart from Karin no-one else on the ship had been informed, until they were sure that all was developing normally they didn't want to share the happy news. They couldn't hide Miranda's condition from EDI, but she was under strict instructions not to divulge the information to anyone, most especially Jeff.

Ana felt Miranda tense and gasp behind her, "God, Shepard. It's her isn't it?"

"Miri?" she asked worriedly.

"She's the reason you try to save everyone isn't she? Because you couldn't save her. It's why you throw yourself into danger to protect people," Miranda stated as revelation hit home.

"I know you've read my recent psych reports Miri, the doc concluded that it was something from my past that triggered my 'Protector' mentality," she replied quietly, "Mindoir was the obvious event".

"Do you want to talk about it?" Miranda asked.

"Maybe later Miri, it's been a bitch of a day to go over that set of memories," she grimaced.

"If you do intend to stay here all night at least try not to get a crick in your neck again," the brunette kissed her lightly, "I'm turning in," Miranda left the room as quietly as she entered.

"She's gone now Els, so you can stop pretending to be asleep," Ana said quietly reaching out to take a hand in her own.

After a few moments the worrying frail woman turned her head slowly and opened her eyes to look at the spectre, "How, how did you know I was awake?" came the whisper.

"I noticed your vitals fluctuate and your breathing changed ever so slightly, I've been in this medbay often enough to understand the readouts. Not that I'd admit that to Karin or Miranda,"

"Is it really you Ana or am I dreaming of freedom?" came the hesitant reply.

"If you were dreaming Els I'd be younger with fewer scars," Ana answered smiling, "You're aboard the spectre ship Normandy, we're en route to an Alliance hospital ship so you and the others can receive specialised medical care,"

"Did you really look for me for all that time Ana?" came the whisper again.

"So, you heard the conversation, did you? I wasn't sure, how much of it?"

"All of it,"

"Trying to move on was the hardest thing I'd ever tried to do Els, I've never forgiven myself for letting you down,"

"Your..girlfriend?" Ana nodded and Elspeth continued, "She's right, it wasn't your fault Ana. You couldn't have stopped them all, you would have ended up dead or taken too,"

"Dead they nearly managed, I was lucky an alliance patrol found me when they did, it took months to recover,"

"I prayed you were safe and that the soldiers would come for us but after days turned into weeks and then months I gave up hoping too," Els started to cry, Ana wrapped her arms around her and tried to picture the beautiful girl she remembered and wept too.

After a long time, Elspeth had quieted down, and Ana was slowly trying to lay her back down to sleep when a murmured comment reached her, "The Batarians call you the red-headed death, did you know that? We overheard them talking about the human Spectre, the Shepard who stood for all races and I knew it had to be you, it gave us a spark of hope again,"

"I guess I've given them enough reason to talk about me over the years," Shepard commented drily, "Try to sleep some more Els, you need the rest and the medication will help with the pain,"

"I have nightmares Ana, truly horrible nightmares. Danny managed to run but they shot him in the back and laughed about it. They, they….abused us all at the beginning, male or female it didn't matter to them. They may have abused my body but you're the only one I've made love with Ana, they couldn't take that memory away from me,"

"I'm here now Els, I'll watch over you tonight and keep the nightmares away,"

"Promise?"

"I promise, no-one will hurt you ever again," Ana kept her voice calm but inside she was seething with anger at what had happened at the hands of the Batarians. She moved her seat closer to the bed and placed a protective arm over Elspeth's waist. Once she was sure Elspeth had finally gone back to sleep she propped her head on top of her forearm to try and snatch some sleep herself, "I'm so sorry Els, you deserved better than this, hell we both deserved better".


	12. Old Unhappy Far Off Things

**Valhallan Thresholds, Terminus Systems, 13****th**** March 2188 CE**

Karin and her team had worked tirelessly ministering to the freed slaves, despite a few close calls and resuscitations of one or two flatlining patients, miraculously all survived the two days delay before reaching the rendezvous point.

After transferring all eighty three survivors into the care of the medical staff of the hospital ship SSV Florence Nightingale, the Normandy was preparing to jump to FTL towards their next target when Shepard received an urgent comms from Joker, "Commander, we're being hailed by a shuttle from the Nightingale, the pilot is requesting permission to dock".

"Hmm, I wonder what they want? Permission granted Joker, let's see what this is about," Ana replied curiously.

The shuttle pilot manoeuvred the ship to the docking hatch where it was clamped into place, as they waited for the atmosphere in the corridor to first vent and then equalise, Jeff made another comment from the cockpit, "Shep…sorry, ma'am. We have a Top Sergeant Isabel Jones requesting permission to come aboard the Normandy,"

"Screening process will terminate in thirty seconds," EDI intoned from the co-pilot seat.

"Isabel Jones? Isabel Jones?" Ana looked up suddenly with a huge grin plastered across her face when recognition kicked in, "Permission granted Joker".

As the hatch slid open with a soft hiss the figure in front of her drew to stiff attention and saluted with military precision, "Commander Shepard?"

Any other comment that the woman was going to make was taken away by a powerful hug as Ana threw both arms around her and tightly embraced one of her dearest friends, corpswoman Dizzy Jones. Laughing at the confused expression on her friend's face, "Spectre ship Diz, not as strict as Alliance," Ana kissed both cheeks in welcome and finally let go.

"What on earth are you doing out here Diz?" Ana asked smiling, as they sat in her cabin drinking coffee. She'd instructed Kelly to hold calls for a while and led Dizzy through the CIC and up to the 'loft'.

"Looking up an old friend and hoping for a berth Shepard. That's if you can fit in a grizzled old medic?" Dizzy replied smiling back, "I pulled every string I could trying to find you and suddenly you appear out of the blue needing a hospital ship that I'm fortunately serving on at the moment".

"Grizzled old medic my ass Dizzy, you've hardly changed since you patched me up years ago," Ana grinned mischievously, "Hell, if I was single you'd be dragged to that bed over there and be naked already," she admired the older woman seated before her as she blushed attractively. Dizzy was approaching forty but still looked fantastic, the military career had kept her toned and she looked as graceful as ever, there were a few lines starting to form on her face but apart from that there was little evidence of the passing of the last eighteen years.

Ana had developed a teenage crush on Dizzy but never mentioned it until seven years after their first meeting. Over the next few years whenever they bumped into each other they ended up in bed, but the transitory nature of military life meant that anything other than sex between friends was out of the question unfortunately.

"So, Top Sergeant Jones is it? Given your length of service shouldn't they have you safely behind a desk by now with bars on your shoulders?" Ana teased.

"You know me Ana, I'd get bored within a week. I'd rather be out on the field patching up idiots like you who think they're invulnerable," she grinned, "I made just enough trouble to keep me at NCO level, talking of which I heard some scuttlebutt that they offered you promotion to admiral and you turned it down?"

"Sounds like something you'd do Diz," Ana smiled in amusement at the thought. "Yeah, the brass did offer it to me, and yes it was turned down – there's too much to fix out here before I hang up my combat suit. That and I have two admirals in the family already, which is more than enough!" she laughed.

"I also heard you were seriously hurt again Ana, how bad was it?" she asked with concern on her face.

"Pretty bad Diz, it was touch and go for a while whether I'd pull through or just earn my second set of wings with a look of permanence about it!"

"You OK now though?"

"Took a while but yeah, back to 100% and chasing down pockets of Cerberus, Collectors, Geth and lately full circle back to pirates and slavers".

"Given your track record, you definitely need my help Ana," Dizzy grinned, "I heard you had a decent officer of marines but no NCO?"

"That'll be Marie Durand, she's been with us for nearly a year now and proved to be worth every hour I spent convincing her to transfer," Ana stated, "Come on and I'll introduce you to your new CO, she can show you to your quarters".

"God, it's good to see you though Dizzy, it's been too long," Ana smiled affectionately, and the friends embraced again before they had to act professionally in front of the crew. Shepard chastely kissed the medic on the lips and let go.

Later that evening Ana was sat on her couch with one arm draped around Miranda's shoulders, with her free hand she was slowly rotating the half empty glass of whisky in her palm, Miranda was sipping sparingly at a soft drink. Sat opposite the two women was the latest addition to the crew, Dizzy, she also held a matching tumbler filled with the same amber liquid. Next to Dizzy was Karin who had a glass of her favourite Serrice Brandy in her hand. The last member of the gathering was Joker, perched on the edge of the sofa and looking slightly dishevelled as usual.

Ana made a mental decision, placed the glass down on the table and spoke quickly, "EDI, open up the conference vid call to my mother, Tali, Ash and Liara please, scan to ensure they are alone then activate full security encryption and ensure no interruptions until the call is ended".

"Acknowledged Shepard, connecting you now".

The four women looked at Ana expectantly, before any of them had the opportunity to speak however the spectre held up her hand to stall them, "Sorry for arranging a last-minute call," she looked at each of them individually, both those in the room and those at the other end of the call.

"Two days ago, we carried out a strike on a slaver base. Once the hostiles had been eliminated we found a number of surviving captives, amongst them was a woman, named Elspeth Walker, she is known to me from many years ago.

"You're the closest people in the world to me one way or the other, and frankly I only want to tell this story once. Honestly, I'd rather have done this in person with all of you, but under the circumstances it can't really wait," she grimaced and continued.

Ana indicated towards the medic, "This is Dizzy Jones, she's an old friend who just transferred to the Normandy today, she knows part of this sorry tale better than me, so I've invited her to fill in any blanks. Mom, you might be able to help with some of the details too".

Hannah looked at Dizzy in recognition and smiled warmly, "Dizzy, it's been a long time, you look well," she smiled and nodded at her old friend Karin.

"Thank you, ma'am, as do you," Dizzy replied.

"I want to tell you about Mindoir…Mom, some of this isn't going to be pleasant, I'm so sorry that I couldn't face telling you before," Ana apologised with a look of regret, her mother nodded encouragingly. Ana swallowed hard and continued, "You all know that I was one of the few survivors from the slaver attack, well this is what happened to me during the raid…"

**Eighteen year earlier: Mindoir, Attican Traverse, 2170 CE**

Ana's mum was one of the command crew of the Alliance carrier SSV Einstein which was currently taking part in some military manoeuvres. Rather than have her sixteen-year-old daughter getting bored aboard the warship she'd arranged for Ana to spend the vacation at her late husband's parents. As a result, the young redhead was having a great summer at her grandparents' house, meeting cousins she didn't know she had and hanging out around the nearby shops and small cinema with the local teens. With her infectious grin, unruly red hair and green eyes she'd had no problems making friends and gaining admirers.

Some of the boys had tried their luck with her at first but had taken her rebuttal entirely unfazed when her sexual preferences were made clear to them. She thought she'd have to keep quiet about her interest in girls but had been over the moon when she'd realised that the colony kids were less hung up about it than the parents might have been.

Among the group of teens, she'd come to know there was one girl who'd caught her eye; Elspeth Walker, at sixteen she was the same age as Ana, slender, around the same height with long dark hair and grey eyes. It seemed to Ana that she lit up the room whenever she smiled which highlighted her dimples, her laugh was musical and made Shepard go weak at the knees.

After a few shy attempts to talk to this captivating girl, Ana was on the verge of giving up when Els took pity on her and admitted she liked the redhead too, so they arranged to go for a date to try and get to know each other better. Within days they'd realised how much they liked each other's company and mutually agreed to become a public item. This was Ana's first proper relationship since coming out to her mum, before that there'd been some petting with her girlfriends at 'sleep-overs' but that was it.

Surprisingly her grandparents hadn't even batted an eyelid when Ana had brought Els home with her the first time, holding hands as they walked through the door, "We're old, not dead yet Ana. Love is where and with whom you find it sweetheart," her gran had said smiling warmly once Ana got back after walking Elspeth home. Shepard just hugged them both in gratitude for their acceptance.

'Not dead yet' turned out to be a tragically prophetic comment six weeks later….

**16****th**** August**

It had been a wonderful day for Ana, she'd spent the morning playing with some of her younger cousins, then the afternoon with Elspeth. The teenage couple had spent a few credits in the stores until it was time to go and see the latest blockbuster in the small cinema, sharing popcorn and soda. After the film they'd walked hand in hand to the nearby lake and found a sheltered spot kissing and exploring each other's bodies, lovingly giving their virginity to each other. As they finally laid there in the afterglow of their first sexual experience they watched the sun slowly set over the distant mountains amid a golden haze.

Ana walked Elspeth home and they kissed longingly on the porch before parting for the night. Shepard practically skipped the way home, floating on a wave of euphoria, "I could ask mum to let me stay, there's a good school here and I can see Els every day," she promised herself to message her mother in the morning.

A few hours later Ana was woken from a vivid dream that involved Elspeth and some very risqué underwear that kept falling down, "Hmm, whaz'zat?" she mumbled half awake, being a spacer kid she was attuned to the thrum of engines and she'd unconsciously become aware of the sounds of shuttles in the distance. "Too late for the port," she thought confused at the noise. After a few minutes however, she started to drift back off to sleep, that was when the shooting and shouting started…

Instantly awake, Ana rolled out of bed and quickly dressed, she froze as her bedroom door opened, "Ana, are you awake?" came a quiet but insistent voice, she relaxed as she recognised her gran's voice. "Yes, what's going on gran?" she whispered.

"We're not sure sweetheart but it sounds bad, your gramps has gone to check it out though, but it's best if we keep quiet until we know what's going on. Do you think you can make it to the storage cellar on your own?" her gran asked.

"Of course gran, it's not far but aren't you coming with me?" she asked, starting to get scared.

"Not yet sweetie, I'm going to stay here and wait for gramps. Here take this, it was your dads," her grandmother handed her a Raikou pistol, it was heavy and cold in her hand, "You do know how to use it, don't you?" the older woman asked.

"Yes gran, I can shoot, targets at least," she'd been taught how to shoot by her mum and David Anderson, a friend of her parents. Blindfolded she could quickly field strip, clean and reassemble a number of weapons with a practiced ease to equal any grunt. She could see immediately that this gun had been modified with a scope and damage enhancements.

"Good, there's a bag of spare clips here too, now go sweetie and don't come back out until we come for you," her grandmother pulled her into a tight embrace and kissed her cheek, "We love you Ana, don't forget that!" there was an edge of fear in the woman's voice.

They made their way to the back door in the dark, careful not to give away their presence. Opening the door silently her grandmother peered into the night until satisfied in was all clear, she signalled Ana to move forward and ushered her out of the door, brushing her cheek lightly as she moved past her and into the yard, "Keep to the shadows," she whispered.

She'd almost made it to the cellar's access hatch when a scream and sounds of a struggle erupted behind her, she turned around without hesitation and ran back to the house as quickly as possible. The lights were now on and through the open door she could see her grandmother struggling in the arms of two assailants, kicking and screaming for all she was worth. Suddenly she managed to wrench free one arm, grabbed a kitchen knife from the block and lashed out, slashing one of the figures across the throat, a spray of crimson and the figure crumpled to its knees. What followed happened in slow motion for the teenager, she looked on in horror as a third figure stepped back from her grandmother and the deafening retort of a shotgun blast sounded, her gran was thrown backwards as she was hit in the abdomen by the round, "Human bitch!" came a guttural snarl and the shotgun wielder kicked the prone woman eliciting a weak moan.

Ana howled in anguish, "GRANNNNNNNNNDMAAAAAA!" muscle memory from hours of practice on the range kicked in, she instinctively raised the pistol, took aim and pulled the trigger in one smooth movement. The head of the first figure exploded with brain matter and blood splattering the near wall as the rounds punched through the misshapen skull. The last assailant turned to face the danger and the muzzle of the shotgun rose in Ana's direction, four eyes widened in shock as the Batarian registered the slip of a girl that had just despatched one of his companions so effectively. That was his last thought as the next kick of the Raikou spat two rounds that slammed through his face between both pairs of eyes.

Ana threw herself to her knees to help her grandmother, blood soaking through her trousers as she tried to staunch the flow of blood from the ruined torso, applying pressure to the gaping wound, "Aa..na?" her grandmother tried to speak through the pain, blood bubbling with every tortured breath she tried to draw in, "You…shouldn't have come back," she rasped.

"Hang on gran, I'll get help for you," Ana cried.

"I think…I think I'm hurt too badly sweetie," she coughed, "Try and find your gramps, you'll need to be brave now Ana," her eyes slowed closely and then she took one last sharp breath and her head dropped.

"No, no, no..Granny please don't die!" Ana pleaded in vain, she placed her head on her grandmother's chest and clasped on tightly as she cried. She lay there with the cooling body for some time until the smell of smoke roused her from her grief, they must have started burning the buildings to flush people out she realised.

She carefully manoeuvred her grandmother's body into a sitting position, knelt behind her then slid her arms around under the armpits and clasped her hands together under the woman's chest. She then slowly dragged her outside leaving a wide blood smear behind. Once she got the corpse a safe distance from the building she laid her back down, kissed her forehead and covered her with a blanket from the washing line. Ana then went back into the house, she ignored the smell of blood and fought back the need to vomit as her stomach reacted, acid reached the back of her throat and she swallowed it back down. She grimaced as she rifled the Batarian bodies for spare clips for the weapons they were carrying,

"Stay calm, stay focused, breath in and exhale slowly," internally she kept repeating the instructions David had given her on the shooting range, it seemed to help fend off the sense of panic that was trying to overwhelm her. She was also starting to get a killer headache, the pressure at the front of her skull was only a vague throbbing sensation right now, but it promised to get worse.

Besides her father's Raikou pistol she now had a shotgun and two heavy pistols with assorted ammunition and clips. Pumping the shotgun, she worked her way around the side of the house and carefully looked out from the bushes that gave her ample cover; parts of the street were burning fiercely and there were bodies lying outside several of the houses. She'd heard of slave raids before, but the reality was far, far worse than any sanitised report she'd seen.

A yell in the distance caught her attention and she headed towards it keeping to the shadows as much as possible, darting between cover where there were gaps. As she neared the source of the noise she spotted a group of Batarians standing outside a burning house with bodies spilling out from the door, it looked like the inhabitants had held on as long as possible and tried to fight their way through when the flames and smoke forced them to abandon their refuge.

"Hey, you - come out here!" came a barked demand and she realised she'd made the mistake of stepping out of the shadows for too long to look at the group, panicked she turned around and came face to face with a tall, powerfully built Batarian.

"Get away from me you bastard!" she screamed and without knowing what she was doing she pushed at the slaver with her hand, a hand suddenly encased in blue swirling energy. The Batarian was caught off-guard and flew backwards a few feet with a look of complete surprise on his face. Pain erupted in Ana's head and she could feel blood spurt from her nose as her previously latent biotics manifested for the first time. With the shotgun she cut down the slaver where he stood, then fled into the dark wiping the blood away from her nose and mouth with the back of her hand, sounds of pursuit coming from behind her.

Gasping for breath and in pain from the headache she managed to hide in the deep shadows behind a dumpster in the alleyway, this was behind the short row of stores that serviced the surrounding town. She waited until the pounding of feet faded into the distance and the pain in her head abated to a dull but steady hammering at her temples.

She felt nauseous with the pain but tried to think clearly, "Where could she go to find her grandfather? Were there any other survivors still fighting or hiding from the raiding party?" It was then that the horrible thought sprang to mind and she bit her knuckle to stop herself crying out loud, "Els…What's happened to Els?"

Pulling herself together she visualised how she could get to Els's house from the alley. From hanging around with the local teens she'd become familiar with all the short-cuts to and from locations, sometimes the kids really hadn't wanted their parents to know what they were up to. Checking her weapons, she slipped out from behind the dumpster and down the alley towards her girlfriends' home.

Keeping once more to the shadows, ducking into doorways periodically to look around she managed to avoid any further conflict, smoke lay heavily in the air the closer she got to her destination. As she turned the last corner she could see that Elspeth's house was ablaze, fire licking out of the now glass-less windows. She threw caution to the wind and ran towards the house shouting Els's name.

Completely focused on finding her girlfriend she lost all awareness of her surroundings until she tripped over the first body and went flying, landing heavily on her hands and knees directly in front of the second. The corpse in front of her was Elspeth's father, he was lying on his side with his hands tied behind his back, his face was bloody, and it looked like he'd been beaten savagely until executed at close range. Gasping in shock Ana scuttled backwards away from the body but found herself pressed up against the body she'd fallen over, that of Els's mother.

Ana had come to really like Elspeth's mother, she had a warm, generous smile and always made Shepard feel welcome, Els had inherited her beautiful grey eyes from her. Now those eyes stared sightlessly into the night, the body was lying on its back in a pool of congealing blood, her dress was torn completely open and her exposed body left no doubt that she'd been raped before being murdered. It proved too much for Ana, she couldn't control her stomach any longer, she vomited violently then crawled away sobbing.

As she lay curled into a ball by the porch, rational thought slowly took control once more after the shock of finding the two bodies. Els hadn't been killed with her parents, there was still a chance she was alive. Ana shook her head, winced at the pain, spat out the taste of vomit and wiped her chin, she then moved reluctantly back to the corpses. She first retrieved the shotgun she'd dropped when she tripped, then took off her hoody and laid it over Els's mum so it covered her breasts, belly and crotch. It was all the dignity she could afford her at the moment, she gently closed the corpse's eyes and murmured a promise to try and save her daughter.

"The fuckers must be using the spaceport as a base while they're planet-side, I'll bet that's where they'll take Els and any other prisoners. Gramps will have headed there too". It wasn't far away, under normal circumstances she'd be able to make it in twenty minutes from here. It would take longer if she had to sneak there without being seen by any slavers, turning away from the bodies she set off towards her destination.

She made it across three streets before she ran into trouble, while making her way carefully down an unlit cut-through between two houses she heard screaming coming from the next street up. Peering around the corner of the building she could see two slavers dragging children towards the spaceport, they couldn't have been more than ten years old and they were struggling futilely against the alien's strength. She could have just kept quiet and let them pass but her conscience wouldn't let her.

Steeling herself, Ana waited until they were only a short distance away from the mouth of the alleyway then tried to visualise the biotic push she'd unconsciously used earlier. It made her head ache even more, but her hand was starting to glow with the same blue energy.

"Hey, you, try picking on someone nearer your own size!" she shouted at the group, both Batarians looked up and peered into the dark opening, without warning a blue energy force shot in their direction and staggered them both. In the alley Shepard moaned in pain from the mental effort and lost balance for a second, she forced herself upright and raised both heavy pistols, she couldn't use the shotgun without risking the children at this range. She wasn't after finesse and just pulled the triggers simultaneously in one long burst, she tried to compensate for the kick, but these were cheap, mass produced guns not precision engineered Alliance issue weapons.

One Batarian was hit in the chest, neck and head by a spray of bullets as the recoil forced Ana's hand upwards, killed instantly he fell to the ground. The second was more fortunate and only received a flesh wound in the shoulder, he released his captive and charged Ana, sharp teeth bared in rage, "Kill you human, use your head as an ornament!"

Taken by surprise at the ferocity, Ana slammed into the wall as the Batarian collided with her. She was dazed long enough for a clawed hand to grab her throat and another to deliver a powerful punch to her jaw, her head snapped to the side and stars burst in her vision. While grasping weakly for the slaver's wrists to try and stop the choking and punches, Ana was kicking wildly, one must have connected as the Batarian shuddered in pain and his grip weakened slightly. It gave her enough respite to reach for her father's pistol, shoving it against the slaver's ribs she squeezed the trigger repeatedly until the clip ejected.

The Batarian let out a long sigh and blood ran from his mouth, eyes rolled back he folded to the floor freeing Ana from his grip, she slid down the wall coughing as she tried to gasp in as much air as possible into her burning lungs. It can only have lasted a few seconds, but it felt like hours had passed in the short, violent exchange. Looking up she saw two small figures slowly approach her, "Are you still alive?" came the tentative question, "I think so, I hurt too much not to be," she rasped through a raw throat.

Standing up took more effort than she was really expecting, she was going to have some major bruises after this, motioning for the children to join her, they looked wide eyed at the dead alien then both grabbed Ana in a tight hug, "They were going to take us away with them. I think they hurt our parents," the girl sobbed, the boy was white-faced but trying to be brave. Ana eventually managed to coax their names out, they were Maisy and Tom, twins from one of the houses closer to the edge of town.

"I'm Ana, I'm looking for my friend Elspeth and my grandfather Robert Shepard, have you seen them?" she asked. "We know Elspeth, she's really nice to us even though some of the other kids make fun of us being twins," answered Maisy, "But we haven't seen her or your grandpa, have we Tom?" He shook his head, obviously his sister was the talkative one.

"I need to find them really quickly, so you can't come with me, it'll be too dangerous for you," Ana explained, the children looked terrified at being left behind, "But first we'll find somewhere safe for you to hide until the bad men have gone," they looked relieved that Ana was going to help them first.

"I know the perfect place, you know the Anderson's store?" she asked, both nodded, "They have a big storeroom out the back you can hide in and there's food and soda, so you won't be hungry or thirsty," they brightened up at the prospect. "Wait here for a minute, I just want to get something from the Batarians," as the children stood in the alley she checked both bodies and took all the spare thermal clips she could find.

"OK, let's go. We need to be very quiet and stay in the shadows, can you manage that?" again more nods, "Hold my hand Maisy, and Tom take hold of your sister's, that way we won't lose each other". The little group set off as carefully as they could, Ana in the lead with her dad's pistol held firmly in her hand. It took about ten tense minutes to reach the store, they froze at every unexpected sound and waited with bated breath until it was safe to continue.

Shepard led the children round to the side entrance and tried the door, it was still locked which gave her hope that the business was undisturbed by the attack. She activated her omni-tool and tried to unlock the door using a highly irregular program, it would have earned her several years-worth of detention if it had been discovered. It had been created by one of the tech savvy students who'd made it available to a select few of the rebellious seniors.

"Come on, come on. Work you piece of crap!" Ana muttered under her breath, as if on cue the indicator turned green and the lock disengaged. She instructed Maisy and Tom to wait in the shadows while she checked the coast was clear. The door swung silently inwards as she pushed it gently, the interior was dark, and she allowed her eyes to adjust to the low light. She stepped inside with the pistol held out in the combat ready stance she'd been taught, she strained her ears searching for any signs of movement but didn't pick anything up, she let out the breath she'd been holding then moved deeper into the building.

Everything was in place in the front of the store, obviously looting wasn't on the agenda for the Batarians, the backroom was also locked but her hack once more made fairly short work of opening the door. Again, nothing in here was unexpected, plenty of shelves and darkened areas the children could hide in. She returned to the side door and motioned the children inside. She closed the door behind them and led them to the storeroom, there she helped them pile up some blankets in a small space between some high shelving and the rear wall where no-one would be able to see them. The trio also helped themselves to some snacks and soft drinks from the refrigerator and carried them back to the makeshift den. Ana took some energy bars for herself and wolfed down a couple, as the sugar rush kicked in the headache lifted a little.

"Ana?" Maisy whispered when her brother was out of earshot, "What if we need to, you know…go pee or something while we're in here?" she asked eyes wide.

"Good thinking Maisy, see if you can find a bucket and we'll make a toilet over there in the far corner," Shepard replied trying not to smile.

Five minutes later Ana was getting ready to go, "I'll leave the door unlocked in case you need to leave but try to stay hidden until it all goes quiet out there. Only come out if I come back for you or you see Alliance soldiers outside, you promise me?" she begged. The twins looked at each other and nodded solemnly, "We promise Ana," then they clung on for another reassuring hug from her. Leaving the children behind was heart-breaking but it had to be done, Ana closed the storeroom door behind her and slipped back out the side into the alley again.

As she made her way to the spaceport the sounds of weapons fire started to intensify, "Someone must be standing up to them," it gave her some hope and spurred her on. She was pretty sure she could hear gunfire in the distance too, but it seemed to be coming from the opposite direction to the port. Concentrating on the destination that gave her the most hope of finding Els or her grandfather she carried on.

She reached the last turn before the port and it was a cacophony of gunfire, explosions, screaming and shouts that greeted her, she eased her head around the corner to get a look at the scene playing out. The admin building for the port was a squat, ugly construction but solidly built, it was under heavy fire from a large group of Batarians who were interspersing hails of bullets with grenade attacks as they tried to force their way in. Sporadic gunfire replied to the slavers as a small contingent of colonists were putting up stiff resistance while trying to stay alive.

Using the scope from her father's pistol she caught a glimpse of a familiar battered brown slouch hat bobbing around behind the hastily barricaded windows, it meant her gramps was still alive and helping with the fight - she needed to get to him, but how? She scanned the area surrounding the port but there was no cover she could use to sneak closer and the neighbouring buildings were too far away to jump from. Underground? "Don't be stupid Ana," she admonished herself. Hell, with the noise and confusion, she could drive a hover car through and it wouldn't create a diversion big enough.

A glint of metal caught her eye and she brought the scope upwards, "What about over?" there was an overhead power cable connecting the building opposite with the admin office. It was only a short distance between them and she should be able to drag herself along the wire from one roof to the other, they'd done something similar along a rope in PhysEd. Power had been cut by the Batarians to stop calls for help so she didn't have to worry about electrocution.

Realising she couldn't cross the street safely without being seen, working around the block wasn't ideal but she made her mind up quickly as it seemed the only option available to her. Timing it with a renewed flurry of explosions, with smoke billowing between the blocks she darted across staying as low to the ground as possible. Breathing heavily, she made it to the other side and ducked down behind a low wall, peaking over the top she checked her next move. The alleyway about ten feet away would give her a direct route behind the buildings and from there she should be able to work her way around without any further danger, as long as there were no waiting Batarians that is.

Sneaking down the dark, narrow alley, she was counting off the buildings until she reached the end of the block, there she looked for a way in and finally spotted a half open window on the first floor. There was a dumpster pushed up again the rear wall that would give her the boost up that she needed. Clambering up the side of the metal container and onto the top she could reach the window with only a small leap, hooking her fingers over the window frame she was able to drag herself inside the room.

It was dark and eerily quiet inside the block, doors had been smashed off hinges as the slavers had swept through looking for victims, the stairs creaked under her weight, so she tried to keep to the edges as she made her way upwards. She finally reached the top floor and the exit to the roof, she hacked the lock and let herself out onto the open space. She crawled over to the wall nearest to the admin building keeping her head down, the wire was exactly where she expected it to be, she peered over the edge; it was about thirty feet down to the street below and she'd have to make it across the wire without losing her balance somehow.

Taking a deep breath, she eased herself slowly over the wall and onto the wire, at first her weight shifted the tension and she had to cling on desperately until the swinging stopped, "At least it is taking my weight, so far," she thought morbidly. Now stretched out to full length, one knee hanging down to create a counter balance she slowly pulled herself across the distance. Concentrating on the other side so she didn't get distracted and look down, she edged closer until her fingertips touched the bracket securing the wire to the admin building. Taking a firm hold she pulled herself closer until she could place a foot onto the narrow ledge than ran around the top, she now had the traction to heave herself onto the roof and lay there for a minute in relief.

Once she recovered enough from the nerve-wracking crawl she looked around for a way into the building, there was no sign of a fire exit but there was an access hatch, locked of course, she activated her omni-tool again and hacked the lock. The hatch swung downwards with a loud clang, she had to duck back quickly as a shot rang out from below and just missed her head.

"Don't shoot! Don't shoot please, I'm human!" she shouted hoping that whoever had taken a pot-shot could hear her.

"Move slowly into my view and show me your hands," came the curt reply. Ana crawled forward until her head and shoulders were over the hatch then extended her hands out to show the figure that she was unarmed. Satisfied that she presented no immediate threat the figure relaxed slightly, "What the hell are you doing up there and more to the point how did you get there?" he demanded.

"Crawled across the overhead wire from the next building. Looking for my grandfather Robert Shepard," she answered precisely.

The colonist turned his head and shouted over his shoulder, "Bob, I need you up here!" looking back up he said, "We'll see if you're telling the truth quickly enough missy".

"What is it Cory?" came a familiar voice as her grandfather jogged up the stairs.

"Caught this girl breaking into the building, claims to be looking for you," Cory indicated with his rifle.

"Gramps!" she shouted in relief to see her grandfather alive and unhurt.

"Ana? What are you…Oof!" she threw herself down the ladder and barrelled into his arms sobbing. He held her tight while she cried, although concerned about why his grand-daughter was here of all places his military background ensured he didn't lose focus on their dire situation, "Take a look up top Cory, see if we can get any advantage from the added elevation. Maybe a couple of rifles up there will help keep the Batarians off our necks".

"Good thinking Bob, I see some of that marine training stuck after all this time," his friend commented.

"Army never leaves you Cory, no matter how much you try to leave it," Robert replied grimly. Looking down to Ana he asked gently, "What are you doing here Ana and where's your grandmother?"

"They, they came to the house Gramps, there was a fight and….and Gran was hurt, she told me to look for you," she hiccupped.

"Is, is she still alive?" he asked, but already guessing the answer he received, Ana looked up with tears tracing lines down her face and shook her head. Shoulders slumping, Robert closed his eyes in grief and said a silent prayer for his wife of forty-two years. Emi and he had served in the military together, fought side by side, fallen in love, married and raised a family. Their eldest son John, Ana's father, had followed them into service and been killed in action but apart from that heartbreak theirs had been a long and happy marriage, blessed with children and grandchildren.

He would deal with his grief later but for now he had to stay in control, "Come on sweetheart, let's get you cleaned up as best we can," he murmured into Ana's hair and led her to a washroom. "Tell me how you got here," he encouraged her as he used a wet cloth to wipe the dirt and blood from her face. Ana described what she'd endured on the way to the port, she started to cry again when she recounted the scene at Elspeth's house.

"You've been incredibly brave Ana, more so than a lot of soldiers I served with," he squeezed her shoulder, "We saw some captives being led off towards waiting ships but we couldn't get close enough to help before we were forced to take cover in here," he added, "She might have been amongst them," he tried to give her hope.

"I'll do whatever it takes to find her gramps, I won't give up," she stated determinedly.

"That's my girl,"

"Will these help the people here?" she asked offering up the two heavy pistols, the shotgun and the bag of clips.

"How did you get hold of these, no forget I asked, I can guess already," he replied, "You keep the shotgun and some of the clips just in case".

"I can help on the barricades gramps, I'm not scared anymore and I'm a good shot,"

"If you were anyone else I'd think you were lying, but you're a Shepard Ana, soldiering's been in our blood for generations," he said proud of her. He didn't want to place her in any danger but knew that their time was running out and he doubted the Batarians would be taking any prisoners from this group, another willing gun might make all the difference.

"If you're sure you want to help then follow me," he got up and headed to the office on the ground floor, there were a small number of colonists here already, taking cover and occasionally popping up to shoot back at the slavers besieging them. The furniture had been used to construct the barricades covering the windows and the floor was covered with debris and broken plexi-glass that crunched underfoot.

"This is your position now Ana, don't take any risks but if you get a clear shot make it count,"

"Yes, gramps, I understand,"

They held on for a few more hours but it was a war of attrition, every loss they suffered meant the end was closer. Ana had been using the pistol as much as possible, it had a better effective range than the shotgun and the scope added to her already impressive aim. A determined push from the Batarians had them close to the windows so she was forced to revert to the stopping power of the shotgun, blasting away at the slavers when they got too close. They were also getting dangerously low on thermal clips, a scattering of discharged ones littered the floor around her feet.

As one Batarian got too close she poked the barrel out of the window and fired at point blank range, unfortunately as he fell it left her partially exposed for a second, suddenly she found herself laying on her back, her head ringing and with stabbing pains rushing up from her arm. Looking down she was shocked to see bone protruding from an open wound on her forearm, her t-shirt was holed in multiple places with small blossoms of blood forming around them. Stinging puncture wounds also dotted her arms and face. Her shotgun was laying on the floor, the heat exhaust chamber was ruptured, that explained the shrapnel wounds at least, it must have been hit by a round when the slaver had fallen.

Gritting her teeth, she tried to tuck her hand into her waistband to keep the arm still, "Gramps, I need help in here please!" she shouted. There were only a handful of colonists left now and they were desperately trying to stop the Batarians forcing their way through the door and windows. Her grandfather lurched into the room looking exhausted, he took one look at her injuries and knelt down in front of her and reached for the kerchief around his neck to bind up her arm. "Sorry Ana but it looks like our lucks running out at last, we're almost out of clips and people to use them,"

"It's alright gramps, we've given them a bloody nose all right. I'm just sorry I couldn't save Elspeth. Love you gramps," she smiled despite it all. "Love you too sweetheart," he replied smiling back.

A loud crash behind them meant that the barricade had finally been breached, Ana raised her pistol left handed and fired past her grandfather until the barrel was glowing red hot and the gun jammed, she'd used her last thermal clip a while ago. A figure rose up from behind the window frame followed by a deafening crack, a white-hot pain lanced through Ana, her chest was on fire and it was difficult to breathe properly. As she started to black out the last thing she saw and felt was her grandfather slumping on top of her with a blank expression on his face.

"Medic! Medic! We've got a live over here!" the marine corpswoman sprinted over and knelt down, she took one look at Ana, "Christ, she's just a kid, what the fuck was she doing here?" the first marine looked at her, "Putting up more of a fight than a squad of Alliance marines put together by the looks of it". He indicated the destroyed shotgun, all the empty clips around her and the Raikou pistol still clenched in her hand, the barrel looked partially fused due to overheating. As the medic was working on her she glanced at her tags "ID names her as Shepard, Anastasia, next of kin is….Oh shit! It's XO Shepard's daughter. I need an immediate evac for her, now!" she spoke quickly into her comms to arrange the shuttle pickup.

Hannah was excused from duty by her commander as soon as she was able to relay the news about her daughter to him, by the time the shuttle docked she was standing with the medical staff ready to receive Ana. The corpswoman had stayed with her to ensure she didn't deteriorate and to relay her condition to the waiting team, "She has multiple shrapnel wounds to her upper body, an open fracture to the right radius and a through and through bullet wound to the thorax has collapsed the left lung," she continued, "Medi-gel was applied to the smaller wounds, I sealed the sucking chest wound and stabilised the arm. She's been transfused with three units and I've administered a sedative and antibiotics".

"Thank you corporal, sounds like you've done a good job on her so far, we'll get her into theatre immediately and finish up what you started," the doctor acknowledged the report.

"Were there any other survivors' corporal?" Hannah asked hopefully, she could see her daughter was filthy and covered in blood of varying freshness, it was unclear how much was her own. Red hair was stuck to her forehead by a patch of crusted gore.

"Not with your daughter ma'am, she was amongst a pile of bodies and we nearly missed her," the corpswoman saluted then continued, "Looks like a group of colonists put up a hell of a scrap with the Batarians before they were overwhelmed, she was surrounded by empty clips and still holding this pistol when we found her," she handed the Raikou to Hannah.

Hannah looked at the weapon in recognition, "This was her fathers, I'd given it to his parents as a keepsake," looking at the medical team who were ready to take her daughter away, "I have to go, but thank you for all you did for her…corporal?"

"Jones. ma'am and just doing my job. She's a real fighter, I hope she recovers soon," the marine saluted and jogged back to the shuttle to head planet-side again.

Hannah sat worried outside the operating theatre waiting for news about Ana, she was cradling the pistol given to her by the medic. It had been years since she'd seen it, she'd not wanted it after it was recovered with her husband's body and had given in to her in-laws. Other than the fresh scrapes and obvious heat damage it seemed to have been maintained regularly and looked after, she smiled sadly, that had been Robert and Emi all over, both had been soldiers until they married and settled down to raise a family.

"Shepard? Ma'am?" one of the surgical team approached her which pulled her away from her thoughts, "Your daughter's out of surgery now and is being taken to the ICU ward, you can go and sit with her there if you like although it'll be some before the anaesthetic wears off".

"Thank you doctor, will she be OK?" Hannah asked in trepidation.

"We expect her to make a full recovery although it'll probably take a few months," the surgeon explained, "The lung was repaired successfully and re-inflated, we were lucky that nothing else was damaged and there were no bone fragments resulting from the injury," he paused then continued, "All the shrapnel has been removed but she'll have a few scars unless they're treated at a later date. The most concerning damage was the open fracture, we were able to re-construct the bone and close the wound, but infection had already set in before the corporal got to her, she'll be on a course of treatment for a while for that".

"Will there be any long-term health issues for her?"

"Barring any unexpected complications, no, not that we anticipate. As long as we clear up the infection, time and physiotherapy will take care of the rest. Swimming would be a good exercise for her lungs though when she's up to it" he added, "If you go back to the reception area they'll be able to direct you to the ward she's been transferred to,"

"Thank you again doctor," Hannah said gratefully, visibly relieved at the good news.

"Ma'am," the surgeon nodded and left her in the corridor.

**SSV Einstein, hospital ward, 2****nd**** September**

"Just checking in to see how my handiwork is holding up," she smiled, "How are you feeling today Shepard?" asked the corpswoman. Isabel 'Dizzy' Jones had taken to visiting Ana in the ward whenever she had a few minutes spare when off duty. She was one of the small number of visitors to come to the hospital besides her mum, Aunt Karin, David and a few school friends. Even Joker had been once or twice in the last few weeks, limping in on his crutches, while trying to cheer Ana up he'd blurted out that he was going to become a brother, his stepmother on Tiptree was pregnant.

"Hi Jonesey, pretty much the same as a few days ago thanks – still like I had an argument with a Krogan," Ana replied.

"And?" Dizzy fished for the next response.

"You should see the other guy!" Ana laughed despite herself, "Ow, ow, crap that pulls".

"Ana, we found some survivors a few hours after you. Two children were telling us they were saved by an 'Angel with a blue hand', would you know anything about that?"

"Maisy and Tom are ok?" she gulped in shame, she'd forgotten about them completely in her grief about her grandparents and Els.

"As well as they can be under the circumstances, they'll be shipping out to their grandparents to live soon," Dizzy smiled, "They've been bugging everyone on how you're doing after they found out you were alive, they'd like to see you before they go if you're up to it?"

"I, I don't know…" Ana quailed.

"You don't have to decide immediately Ana, just give it some thought. They're grateful to you for what you did for them and want to thank you. Hell, the way they describe it, you swept down like some avenging goddess of war to save them,"

"Scared, angry kid with no sense of self-preservation more like," Shepard grimaced.

"Don't put yourself down Shepard, you're a teenager not a soldier. You still saved people and took down some slavers, despite being in a situation you should never have found yourself in," Dizzy reassured her, "Soooo…blue hand, eh? Biotics?" she broached the subject.

"Yeah, apparently so," Ana looked unsure if this was a good or bad thing, "Sounds like I was exposed to eezo a couple of times when I was a baby and again a few years later, the stress triggered my abilities. Mum and the docs are discussing implants and what training is available to me, so I can learn to control it."

"If you get a choice go for the latest L3 implant, they're a huge improvement over the L2s,"

"Thanks for the advice Dizzy…Diz?" Ana screwed up her resolve, "I want to enlist, the Alliance have frequent run-ins with the Batarians and it's the only way I'll be able to find Elspeth," her eyes were shining with unshed tears.

Dizzy leant forward and took Ana's hand and squeezed sympathetically, "You're too young kiddo, you have to be eighteen to join up. Talk to your mum and David about it first, you have nearly two years to consider making that commitment," trying to change the subject she added brightly, "With any luck we'll have found the captives in the next few weeks anyway, so you concentrate on getting better".

Ana turned her head away from the marine that was fast becoming a good friend, "All I can think about is her and the night I walked her home for the last time, when I try to sleep I see her mum laying there dead staring at me with the same eyes," she started to cry.

Dizzy, at twenty-two years old, had been in the Alliance marines for three years and deployed several times after graduating from basic training. Even with her combat experience she felt nothing but sympathy for Ana, a girl who'd somehow survived this terrible ordeal and displayed amazing fortitude. She would never pity her, Ana didn't need it and Dizzy was pretty sure she wouldn't want it either, she was too strong for that judging by what she'd heard about her actions.

She waited patiently until Ana stopped crying and gently asked, "Have you spoken to your mum or the doctors about your nightmares Ana? They might be able to help".

"No, and I'm not going to Diz, I'm not going to have people think I'm a nut job because of bad dreams," Ana sniffled and shook her head.

"Trauma doesn't discriminate Ana, it's not a weakness, even the most experienced soldiers can suffer from PTSD because of what they've witnessed or had to do".

"I'm not ready to talk about it with anyone else Diz, please just let it drop. I'll find a way to deal with it, I promise," Shepard pleaded earnestly.

"Alright Ana, I'll leave it to you, but I will hold you to that promise," Dizzy replied.

"Thanks Dizzy, you have my word," she wiped her eyes, "When exactly are Maisie and Tom leaving?"

"Three, four days tops, is what I was told".

Shepard took a deep breath and let it back again slowly, "Give me a day or two then I'll feel up to seeing them, please?" she pleaded.

As promised two days later, two shy but clean children were led into the hospital ward, shy that was until they say Ana smiling at them uncertainly. All reluctance was abandoned, and they ran to Ana's bed and threw themselves at her shouting her name.

"Careful you two she's still very sore," Dizzy laughed as Ana sucked in air sharply as a stray elbow caught her in the ribs.

Maisy was almost besides herself at seeing Ana again and barely took a breath as she chattered on, Tom was still more reserved, but it was probably habit at the lack of opportunity to get a word in with his sister. They ate lunch together pulling collective faces at the hospital food although Ana did let Maisy help her with cutting up her food and spoon feeding her the pudding.

After a few hours Dizzy returned to the ward to find all three of them asleep, the twins had slipped under the bedclothes and were cuddled up to Ana. The teenager was lying on her side curled up around Maisie with Tom behind her with an arm wrapped around, Shepard was snoring gently. Shaking her head in silent laughter Dizzy left them quietly and asked the nurse at the station to call her when they awoke.

The following day the twins were booked onto a shuttle for their onward journey to their grandparents, Ana elicited a promise from them to let her know when they'd arrived safely and to keep in touch.

**Shepard's Cabin March 13****th**** 2188 CE**

Shepard's family and friends had listened in horrified silence as she described her ordeal during the raid, Miranda was squeezing Ana's hand so tightly her knuckles turned white with the effort to anchor Shepard in the present.

"Oh, my poor darling!" Hannah spoke quietly.

Ash and Tali were able to hold each other as the tale unfolded, without thought they both reached out a hand towards the image of Ana in front of them in order to comfort her, she also reached forward, and their hands reached an approximation of holding in the middle; flesh meeting projection.

"Keelah, that's horrible Shepard," Tali whispered as she clung onto Ash, luckily the call had coincided with the other Spectre's latest scheduled visit to the Citadel. Her ship was docked for a performance diagnostics.

"Captain, oh my captain," came the heartbroken response from Ashley, the normally stoic brunette looked utterly stricken.

"By the Goddess, Shepard," was the shocked comment from Liara, "How did you even manage to function after that? Never mind remain so impartial towards Batarians?"

"Shit Shepard, I'm not surprised you didn't want to talk about it," Joker added.

Recounting her nightmare on Mindoir took an enormous strength of will from Ana. Several times she had to stop to compose herself before she finished, tears ran down her cheeks as she re-lived the experience again in full. Towards the end Dizzy and Hannah contributed their parts to the account as they described the efforts to save Ana on the planet and her emergency operation on the Einstein.

As her loved ones recovered from the shocking story, Ana looked gratefully at Miri although her hand was now throbbing as the circulation was restored, that woman had one hell of a grip when she wanted to. Shepard reached for the tumbler of whisky and knocked back the remaining contents, the liquid traced a warming trail down to her stomach.

"And the girl? No, woman, Elspeth?" her mother asked softly.

"Transferred to the Nightingale with the rest of the survivors mum, they'll get the best treatment possible there," she replied tonelessly.

"And the children, Maisy and Tom?" Karin asked.

"We still keep in touch, Maisie's an Alliance technician now and Tom's a terraform engineer," she said proudly, she still felt a like a big sister to the two orphans.

"Come back to us soon love," came the entreaty from Ash and Tali as Shepard prepared to end the call, "I will, in the next few days, I promise," she replied and smiled at them lovingly.

Once the others had left the room after many sympathetic hugs had been given and received it was just Ana and Miri left in their cabin, Miranda looked at Shepard appraisingly, "What will you do about her? Elspeth, I mean" there was no hint of anger or distress in her voice, more of curiosity if anything.

"I honestly don't know Miri, I've not even thought that far ahead. It was a long time ago," she replied honestly.

That night as they lay in bed together after gently making love, Miranda was sitting partially upright with Ana's head resting on her stomach, she was stroking her lover's thick red hair in a soothing action. Ana had an arm draped protectively around the bump where their child was growing fast. "She's going to be amazing you know?" Shepard murmured.

"Who is Shepard?" Miri replied sleepily.

"Our daughter of course Miri,"

"Who says it's going to be a girl?"

"Can you really imagine us having a son? I get the feeling we're having a girl and my hunches are never wrong," just before Ana drifted off to sleep, she added one further comment, "I think we ought to call her Jane; Jane Lawson-Shepard".

"We'll talk about names another time Shepard," said Miranda smiling, "But I think Shepard-Lawson has a much better ring to it, but I'm really not sure about Jane, it's not very imaginative is it?".


End file.
